creek

1 of 2

noun (1)

ˈkrēk  ˈkrik 

1

: a natural stream of water normally smaller than and often tributary to a river

2

chiefly British : a small inlet or bay narrower and extending farther inland than a cove

3

archaic : a narrow or winding passage

see also:

up the creek

Creek

2 of 2

noun (2)

ˈkrēk 

1

plural Creek or Creeks : a member of any of a group of Indigenous American peoples that formed a confederacy in Georgia and eastern Alabama in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries and that were forcibly removed to Indian Territory in 1836 to 1840

2

a

plural Creek or Creeks : a member of the people who comprised the nucleus of the Creek confederacy : muscogee sense 1

b

: the Muskogean language of this people : muscogee sense 2

Note: Creek is the name by which the Muscogee people were known to English settlers prior to their forcible removal to Indian Territory. Present-day members of this nation live under the name Muscogee (Creek) Nation.

Synonyms of creek

Noun (1)

• brook

Examples of creek in a Sentence

Noun (1)

The children waded in the creek.

The coast is dotted with tiny creeks.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Outside, downtown Rosendale is right at the door, and the nearby Wallkill Valley Rail Trail crosses the 940-foot-long Rosendale Trestle high above the creek—a particularly dramatic place to take in the Hudson Valley’s fall coloring. — Julia Harrison, Architectural Digest, 29 Sep. 2026

Bryan Watts has spent more than three decades watching ospreys reclaim the Chesapeake Bay, returning each spring from South America to crowd its tidal rivers and creeks, shorelines, channel markers and nesting platforms. — Mark Robichaux, Washington Post, 27 Sep. 2026

Months before the cancer diagnoses became a public issue, Creek Team OC, a small grassroots organization, was already campaigning against herbicide spraying in local waterways, arguing chemicals were harming creek ecosystems. — Julia Vargas Jones, CNN Money, 20 Sep. 2026

Runoff is expected to flow into creeks and streams, causing river levels to rise and currents to speed up. — Kansas City Star, 15 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English crike, creke, from Old Norse -kriki bend

First Known Use

Noun (1)

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Noun (2)

1725, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing creek

• up the creek

Rhymes for creek

• beak
• beek
• bleak
• cheek
• chic
• clique
• creak
• eke
• freak
• geek
• greek
• leak

Kids Definition

creek

1 of 2 noun

ˈkrēk  ˈkrik 

1

chiefly British : a small narrow inlet or bay

2

: a stream of water usually smaller than a river

Creek

2 of 2 noun

ˈkrēk 

: a member of an Indigenous people originally of Alabama, Georgia, and Florida

also : their language