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pike
pike common name for the family Esocidae, freshwater game and food fishes of Europe, Asia, and North America. The pike, the muskellunge, and the pickerel form a small but well-known group of long, thin fishes with spineless dorsal fins, large anal fins, and long, narrow jaws with formidable teeth. There are five species in the single genus Esox, found in the lakes and streams of central and E North America. The muskellunge, named by the Native Americans, is the largest of these, averaging from 2 to 7 ft (61-213.5 cm) in length and from 10 to 20 lb (4.5 to 9 kg) in weight, though some may reach 60 lb (27 kg). Carnivorous and solitary except at spawning time, muskellunges feed on fish, frogs, snakes, and even the young of aquatic mammals and waterfowl. The American, northern, or great northern pike, Esox lucius, called jackfish in Canada, is also voracious, lurking in weedy shallows to ambush its prey. This pike, believed to be the same species as the European pike, is said to consume one fifth of its own weight (10-35 lb or 4.5-16 kg) daily. Although a prized game fish in its native habitat, it has been reviled as a pest with the potential to devastate other game species in areas where it has been introduced. The pickerels are smaller members of the family. The grass, or barred, pickerel rarely exceeds 1 ft (30 cm) in length and 1 lb (.45 kg) in weight; the larger Eastern pickerel is found in clear lakes and streams together with bass. Pikes are stubborn fighters and are valued as game fishes; their flesh, though bony, is delicious. The walleyed pike is really a perch . Pikes are classified in the phylum Chordata , subphylum Vertebrata, class Osteichthyes, order Clupeiformes, family Esocidae. |
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"pike." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "pike." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-pike1.html "pike." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-pike1.html |
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Pike
Pike, type character in American humor, a genus of Western immigrant during the pioneering period of the mid‐19th century. The Pike characters were traditionally natives of Pike County, although this locality was variously assigned to Missouri, Arkansas, southern Illinois, northern Texas, or generally to the frontier area. A man from Pike County was usually depicted as an ignorant, suspicious backwoodsman, good‐natured as the butt of frequent jokes, but savagely acquisitive. His exaggerated, droll speech was characterized by an expressive, imaginative dialect. In Bayard Taylor's At Home and Abroad (1860), he is described as:
the Anglo Saxon relapsed into semi‐barbarism. He is long, lathy, and sallow; he expectorates vehemently; he takes naturally to whisky; he has the “shakes” his life long at home, though he generally manages to get rid of them in California; he has little respect for the rights of others; he distrusts men in “store clothes,” but venerates the memory of Andrew Jackson.The Pike as a specific character was launched in the works of George Derby, but it was not until 1871 that he became generally known to the reading public, through Harte's East and West Poems and Hay's Pike County Ballads. |
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James D. Hart and and Phillip W. Leininger. "Pike." The Oxford Companion to American Literature. 1995. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. James D. Hart and and Phillip W. Leininger. "Pike." The Oxford Companion to American Literature. 1995. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O123-Pike.html James D. Hart and and Phillip W. Leininger. "Pike." The Oxford Companion to American Literature. 1995. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O123-Pike.html |
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pike
pike1 / pīk/ • n. (pl. same) a long-bodied predatory freshwater fish (genus Esox, family Esocidae) with a pointed snout and large teeth, of North America and Eurasia. Its five species include the widespread northern pike (E. lucius). ∎ any fish with similar characteristics, such as the walleye. pike2 • n. hist. an infantry weapon with a pointed steel or iron head on a long wooden shaft. ∎ chiefly Brit. (in names) a hill with a peaked top: Scafell pike. • v. [tr.] hist. kill or thrust (someone) through with a pike. pike3 • n. short for turnpike. PHRASES: come down the pike appear on the scene; come to notice. pike4 (also pike position) • n. [often as adj.] a position in diving or gymnastics in which the body is bent at the waist but the legs remain straight. |
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"pike." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "pike." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-pike005.html "pike." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-pike005.html |
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Pike
Pike in California and other Pacific states of the US, a name given in the 19th century to a perceived class of poor white migrants from the southern states of the US; the name comes from Pike County, Missouri, from which the first people of this kind were said to have come to California.
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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Pike." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Pike." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-Pike.html ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Pike." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-Pike.html |
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pike
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"pike." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "pike." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-pike.html "pike." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-pike.html |
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pike
pike1 large voracious freshwater fish. XIV. perh. of OE. date (being perh. repr. XI in place-names), and identical with OE. pīc point, pick, the fish being so named from its pointed jaw.
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T. F. HOAD. "pike." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "pike." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-pike.html T. F. HOAD. "pike." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-pike.html |
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pike
pike2 weapon consisting of a long wooden shaft with pointed head. XVI. — (O)F. pique.
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Cite this article
T. F. HOAD. "pike." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "pike." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-pike1.html T. F. HOAD. "pike." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-pike1.html |
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Pike
Pike (Píce) Laois, Tipperary, Waterford. ‘Pike’.
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A. D. MILLS. "Pike." A Dictionary of British Place-Names. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. A. D. MILLS. "Pike." A Dictionary of British Place-Names. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O40-Pike.html A. D. MILLS. "Pike." A Dictionary of British Place-Names. 2003. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O40-Pike.html |
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pike
pike in U.S. history: see turnpike . |
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Cite this article
"pike." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "pike." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-X-pike2.html "pike." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-X-pike2.html |
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pike
pike Freshwater fish, Esox lucius.
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DAVID A. BENDER. "pike." A Dictionary of Food and Nutrition. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. DAVID A. BENDER. "pike." A Dictionary of Food and Nutrition. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O39-pike.html DAVID A. BENDER. "pike." A Dictionary of Food and Nutrition. 2005. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O39-pike.html |
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pike
pike weapon: see spear . |
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Cite this article
"pike." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "pike." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-X-pike3.html "pike." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-X-pike3.html |
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pike
pike3 short for TURNPIKE. XIX.
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Cite this article
T. F. HOAD. "pike." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "pike." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-pike2.html T. F. HOAD. "pike." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-pike2.html |
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pike
pike See ESOCIDAE.
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MICHAEL ALLABY. "pike." A Dictionary of Zoology. 1999. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. MICHAEL ALLABY. "pike." A Dictionary of Zoology. 1999. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O8-pike.html MICHAEL ALLABY. "pike." A Dictionary of Zoology. 1999. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O8-pike.html |
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Pike
Pike see JS-3.
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"Pike." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Pike." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-Pike.html "Pike." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-Pike.html |
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pike
pike •alike, bike, dyke, haik, hike, kike, like, mic, mike, mislike, pike, psych, psyche, shrike, spike, strike, trike, tyke, Van Dyck, vandyke
•pushbike • motorbike • Klondike
•Thorndike • Updike • hitchhike
•crablike • lamblike
•fanlike, manlike, panlike
•trap-like • catlike • starlike • calf-like
•glass-like, grass-like
•branch-like • plant-like • thread-like
•gem-like • deathlike • waiflike
•vein-like • wraithlike • fiendlike
•leaf-like • dreamlike • queen-like
•sheeplike • witchlike • sylphlike
•piglike
•springlike, string-like, wing-like
•lip-like • princelike • ladylike
•businesslike • lifelike • childlike
•Christlike, vice-like
•knob-like
•godlike, rod-like
•doglike • rock-like • swanlike
•foxlike • warlike • lord-like
•horselike • globe-like
•dome-like, homelike
•ghostlike • rose-like • toylike
•root-like • tooth-like • hood-like
•wolf-like • hook-like
•wool-like • suchlike • sponge-like
•nunlike, sunlike
•dovelike • lion-like • flower-like
•soundalike • lookalike
•statesmanlike • seamanlike
•sportsmanlike • womanlike
•workmanlike • fatherlike • worm-like
•handspike • garpike • marlinspike
•turnpike
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"pike." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "pike." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-pike.html "pike." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-pike.html |
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