Word for the day: peak

peak  |piːk|                                                                      *cima (en Español)

DEFINITION

noun
1 the pointed top of a mountain.• a mountain with a pointed top.2 a projecting pointed part or shape: whisk two egg whites to stiff peaks.• Brit.a stiff brim at the front of a cap.• the narrow part of a ship's hold at the bow or stern.• the upper, outer corner of a sail extended by a gaff.3 the point of highest activity, quality, or achievement: he was at his peak as a cricketer | package holiday sales hit a peak of around 12 million.• a point in a curve or on a graph, or a value of a physical quantity, higher than those around it.

verb [ no obj., with adverbial ]reach a highest point, either of a specified value or at a specified time: the disease peaked in summer.adjective [ attrib. ]at the highest level; maximum: the canal was restored to peak condition.• characterized by maximum activity or demand: traffic speeds are reduced at peak hours.
DERIVATIVESpeakless adjective
ORIGIN mid 16th cent.: probably a back-formation from peaked, variant of dialect picked ‘pointed’.
usage: The word meaning ‘look quickly or furtively’ and ‘a quick or furtive look’ is peek, not peak.

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