What does "peak" mean?
Peak: The top, or one of the tops, of a hill, mountain, or range, ending in a point; often, the whole hill or mountain, esp. when isolated; as, the Peak of Teneriffe. Silent upon a peak in Darien. Keats.
Additional senses
- 2.(Naut.) (a) The upper aftermost corner of a fore-and-aft sail; -- used in many combinations; as, peak-halyards, peak-brails, etc. (b) The narrow part of a vessel's bow, or the hold within it. (c) The extremity of an anchor fluke; the bill. [In the last sense written also pea and pee.] Fore peak. (Naut.) See under Fore.
- 3.To rise or extend into a peak or point; to form, or appear as, a peak. There peaketh up a mighty high mount. Holand.
- 4.To acquire sharpness of figure or features; hence, to look thin or sicky. "Dwindle, peak, and pine." Shak.
- 5.Etym: [Cf. Peek.] To pry; to peep slyly. Shak. Peak arch (Arch.), a pointed or Gothic arch.
- 6.To raise to a position perpendicular, or more nearly so; as, to peak oars, to hold them upright; to peak a gaff or yard, to set it nearer the perpendicular.
Sources
- Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
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- Published: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00 · Modified: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00