Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Spike \Spike\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Spiked}; p. pr. & vb. n.
   {Spiking}.]
   1. To fasten with spikes, or long, large nails; as, to spike
      down planks.

   2. To set or furnish with spikes.

   3. To fix on a spike. [R.] --Young.

   4. To stop the vent of (a gun or cannon) by driving a spike
      nail, or the like into it.

Spike \Spike\, n. [Akin to LG. spiker, spieker, a large nail, D.
   spijker, Sw. spik, Dan. spiger, Icel. sp[=i]k; all perhaps
   from L. spica a point, an ear of grain; but in the sense of
   nail more likely akin to E. spoke of a wheel. Cf. {Spine}.]
   1. A sort of very large nail; also, a piece of pointed iron
      set with points upward or outward.

   2. Anything resembling such a nail in shape.

            He wears on his head the corona radiata . . .; the
            spikes that shoot out represent the rays of the sun.
                                                  --Addison.

   3. An ear of corn or grain.

   4. (Bot.) A kind of flower cluster in which sessile flowers
      are arranged on an unbranched elongated axis.

   {Spike grass} (Bot.), either of two tall perennial American
      grasses ({Uniola paniculata}, and {U. latifolia}) having
      broad leaves and large flattened spikelets.

   {Spike rush}. (Bot.) See under {Rush}.

   {Spike shell} (Zo["o]l.), any pteropod of the genus
      {Styliola} having a slender conical shell.

   {Spike team}, three horses, or a horse and a yoke of oxen,
      harnessed together, a horse leading the oxen or the span.
      [U.S.]

Spike \Spike\, n. [Cf. G. spieke, L. spica an ear of grain. See
   {Spikenard}.] (Bot.)
   Spike lavender. See {Lavender}.

   {Oil of spike} (Chem.), a colorless or yellowish aromatic oil
      extracted from the European broad-leaved lavender, or
      aspic ({Lavendula Spica}), used in artist's varnish and in
      veterinary medicine. It is often adulterated with oil of
      turpentine, which it much resembles.

Source : WordNet®

spike
     n 1: a transient variation in voltage or current
     2: sports equipment consisting of a sharp point on the sole of
        a shoe worn by athletes; "spikes provide greater traction"
     3: fruiting spike of a cereal plant especially corn [syn: {ear},
         {capitulum}]
     4: (botany) an indeterminate inflorescence bearing sessile
        flowers on an unbranched axis
     5: a sharp rise followed by a sharp decline; "the seismograph
        showed a sharp spike in response to the temblor"
     6: a sharp-pointed projection along the top of a fence or wall
     7: a long sharp-pointed implement (wood or metal)
     8: any holding device consisting of a long sharp-pointed object
     9: a long metal nail

spike
     v 1: stand in the way of
     2: pierce with a sharp stake or point; "impale a shrimp on a
        skewer" [syn: {transfix}, {impale}, {empale}]
     3: secure with spikes
     4: bring forth a spike or spikes; "my hyacinths and orchids are
        spiking now" [syn: {spike out}]
     5: add alcohol beverages [syn: {lace}, {fortify}]
     6: manifest a sharp increase; "the voltage spiked"

Source : Free On-Line Dictionary of Computing

spike
     
         To defeat a selection mechanism by introducing a
        (sometimes temporary) device that forces a specific result.
        The word is used in several industries; telephone engineers
        refer to spiking a relay by inserting a pin to hold the relay
        in either the closed or open state, and railroaders refer to
        spiking a track switch so that it cannot be moved.  In
        programming environments it normally refers to a temporary
        change, usually for testing purposes (as opposed to a
        permanent change, which would be called {hard-coded}).
     
        (1999-10-18)