spiky

Adjective Satellite

having or as if having especially high-pitched spots

Adj

Of a plant: producing spikes (“ears (as of corn); inflorescences in which sessile flowers are arranged on unbranched elongated axes”).
Of a plant part: resembling a spike of a plant (see above).
Having one or more spikes; spiny.
Resembling spikes: erect and having sharp points; spikelike.
Of a person or their nature: difficult to deal with; abrasive, hostile, unfriendly.
Of a thing: not smooth; rough, sharp.
Excessively high church (“practising a formal style of liturgy and emphasizing continuity with Catholicism”).

Adjective

Covered with or resembling sharp, stiff points.

Examples

a spiky personality
His opponent’s plays were always SPIKY, designed to block and frustrate.

Origin / Etymology

From spike (“kind of inflorescence in which sessile flowers are arranged on an unbranched elongated axis”) + -y (suffix forming adjectives with the sense “having the quality of”). Spike is derived from Middle English spik, spike (“ear of grain; clove of garlic; plant having spikes; plant of the genus Valeriana, especially Valeriana officinalis; plant of the genus Lavandula, lavender”), from Latin spīca (“ear, head, or spike of grain; plant spike”) (feminine) (also rarely spīcum (neuter) and spīcus (masculine)), possibly ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *spey- (“long; sharp; thin”).

Synonyms

peaky, prickly, thorny

Scrabble Score: 14

spiky: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Word
spiky: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
spiky: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 14

spiky: valid Words With Friends Word