1 definition by Alastair M. Jaques
slang term for a member of the Anglican Church who favors and is at times outright preoccupied with Anglo-Catholic ritual and observance and is a general know-it-all and smart ass about all such matters. Often characterized as a fussy, effeminate younger male, either clergy or layman.
The term may have arisen from humorous observations on the extreme inflexibility and "uprightness" of such individuals as well as their tendency to be very temperamental, or spiky.
The term may have arisen from humorous observations on the extreme inflexibility and "uprightness" of such individuals as well as their tendency to be very temperamental, or spiky.
He loved candles, bells, incense, fiddleback chasubles; the whole liturgical nine yards. He couldn't imagine church being any other way. In other words, a classic spike.
by Alastair M. Jaques May 14, 2008