I really wish I had designed this graphic! It perfectly explains in just a glance the difference between peek and peak. Still have questions? Here's a brief description of both:
- Peek: To surreptitiously glance at something (Andrew used to peek at his Christmas presents as a kid.)
- Peak: The top of a mountain or the highest point of something. (Example: John peaked in high school, since he was the star quarterback and student body president.)
Whatever you do, don't write the phrase sneak peak and blast it to all of your Facebook fans (as I've seen at least five times during the past few weeks). Every time I see this, I want to reply "Hidden mountain!" Fortunately, I have enough self-control not to. :)
One final wrench to throw into this mix is the word pique, which means "to excite or to incite emotion." The most common use of this word is in the phrase piqued his interest (not to be confused with peaked his interest, which is the incorrect use of the word).
Do you ever confuse these words? How often do you use the word piqued? I think it's an awesome word, but it's very underused.
