creature

noun

crea·​ture ˈkrē-chər 

1

: something created either animate or inanimate: such as

a

: an animal that is not a human being

wild creatures of the forest

b

: a human being

He's a social creature.

The poor creature has had a hard life.

I'm a creature of habit; I like my routine.

c

: a being of anomalous or uncertain aspect or nature

creatures of fantasy

2

: one that is the servile dependent or tool of another : instrument

creatural

ˈkrē-chə-rəl 

adjective

creaturehood

ˈkrē-chər-ˌhu̇d 

noun

creatureliness

ˈkrē-chər-lē-nəs 

noun

creaturely

ˈkrē-chər-lē 

adjective

Synonyms of creature

• animal

Examples of creature in a Sentence

rabbits, squirrels, and other furry creatures

Few living creatures can survive without water.

a giant hairy apelike creature

She's a creature of rare beauty.

A social creature by nature, he loves working with people.

The poor creature had no way to get home.

Recent Examples on the Web

In the absence of whales, sucker fish avoid predators by seeking other large creatures to latch onto, including manta rays, dolphins and unlucky scuba divers. —CNN Money, 8 Nov. 2025

Shark Watch South Australia said in their post that the bite mark on Berryman’s thigh measured over 10 inches (27 cm), which suggested the creature was around 3m long. —Gabrielle Rockson, PEOPLE, 8 Nov. 2025

He’s sent to the deadly planet Genna, where every flora and fauna has evolved to be as lethal as possible, and given the seemingly impossible task of killing a fierce creature known as the Kalisk. —Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 7 Nov. 2025

Tasked with a milestone sequence, the studio built an animation, character, creature and digidouble pipeline from scratch, handling 120 complex shots and creating a robust toolset for future creature FX. —Ben Croll, Variety, 7 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, borrowed from Anglo-French, borrowed from Late Latin creātūra "act of bringing into being, something brought into being," from Latin creātus, past participle of creāre "to beget, give birth to, create entry 1" + -ūra

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing creature

• creature comfort

Rhymes for creature

• bleacher
• feature
• preacher
• reacher
• teacher
• schoolteacher

Kids Definition

creature

noun

crea·​ture ˈkrē-chər 

1

: a created being

2

a

: a lower animal

b

: individual sense 2