Creep

/kɹiːp/ · verb

Meaning

(intransitive) To move slowly with the abdomen close to the ground..

Definitions by Sense

1. (intransitive) To move slowly with the abdomen close to the ground.
2. (intransitive, of plants) To grow across a surface rather than upwards.
3. (intransitive) To move slowly and quietly in a particular direction.
4. (intransitive) To make small gradual changes, usually in a particular direction.
5. (idiomatic) To move in a stealthy or secret manner; to move imperceptibly or clandestinely; to insinuate itself or oneself.
6. To slip, or to become slightly displaced.
7. To move or behave with servility or exaggerated humility; to fawn.
8. To have a sensation as of insects creeping on the skin of the body; to crawl.

Example Sentences

Lizards and snakes crept over the ground.

One evening, while the Rabbit was lying there alone, watching the ants that ran to and fro between his velvet paws in the grass, he saw two strange beings creep out of the tall bracken near him.

Reed tips face the dawn shivering in the autumn wind At P'u-k'ou the winter tide has not yet come Sunrise on the sandy bank pocked with narrow caves Pale frogs and dark crabs creep without end.

He tried to creep past the guard without being seen.

Electrification of the Eastern Region main line from Strasbourg, incidentally, is steadily creeping nearer to Paris, and is now complete as far as Château Thierry, 59 miles away; [...].

She crept up the stairs, keeping well into the side because she knew they were less likely to creak this way.

Prices have been creeping up all year.

Old age creeps upon us.

Synonyms for creep

Antonyms for creep

Related Words

Word Forms

• creeps
• creeping
• crept
• creeped
• crope
• cropen

Usage Notes

Choose a synonym only when it preserves the intended meaning, tone, and grammar of the full sentence.

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