pike
part of speech
noun (a pike, pikes; plural of the fish often pike); noun (a pike — weapon); noun (the pike — US road)
meaning for a pupil
1) A large fish with a long body and sharp teeth that lives in rivers and lakes and eats other fish. tree →
2) A long wooden pole with a sharp metal point, used as a weapon by soldiers long ago. tree →
3) (US, short for turnpike) A main road where you pay a toll. tree →
4) (in diving and gymnastics) A position with legs straight and the body bent at the hips. tree →
sense in the lessons
In science: the pike is a freshwater predator at the top of the food chain. In history lessons: medieval soldiers (pikemen) carried pikes. In PE: «a pike jump» or «pike position» in gymnastics and diving. Phrases: «a pike jump», «come down the pike» (US: appear, happen).
examples
- The fisherman caught a huge pike in the lake. tree →
- A pike has very sharp teeth. tree →
- Soldiers long ago fought with pikes. tree →
- In gymnastics, we practised a pike jump. tree →
- Dive in the pike position with straight legs. tree →
- The pike hides in the weeds and waits for small fish. tree →
- A gigantic pike figures also in the Kalevala. tree →
note
For the fish, the plural is often «pike» (three pike), but «pikes» is also used. Several unrelated meanings share one spelling, so the context tells you which one.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «pike» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.