crept
ˈkrept 
; creeping
; creeping
1
a
: to move along with the body prone and close to the ground
A spider was creeping along the bathroom floor.
b
: to move slowly on hands and knees
He crept toward the edge of the cliff.
2
a
: to go very slowly
The hours crept by.
b
: to go timidly or cautiously so as to escape notice
She crept away from the festive scene.
c
: to enter or advance gradually so as to be almost unnoticed
Age creeps up on us.
A note of irritation crept into her voice.
3
: to have the sensation of being covered with creeping things
The thought made his flesh creep.
4
of a plant
: to spread or grow over a surface rooting at intervals or clinging with tendrils, stems, or aerial roots
5
a
: to slip or gradually shift position
The high temperatures of the jet engine cause the turbine blade to creep.
b
: to change shape permanently from prolonged stress or exposure to high temperatures
1
: a movement of or like creeping
traffic moving at a creep
2
: a distressing sensation like that caused by the creeping of insects over one's flesh
especially
: a feeling of apprehension or horror
—usually used in plural with the
That gives me the creeps.
3
: a feed trough accessible only by young animals and used especially to supply special or supplementary feed
called also creep feeder
4
: the slow change of dimensions of an object from prolonged exposure to high temperature or stress
5
: an unpleasant or obnoxious person
6
: a slow but persistent increase or elevation
This political inertia … makes budget creep inevitable.—
The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal
Synonyms
Verb
Noun
- bastard
- beast
- bleeder [British]
- blighter [chiefly British]
- boor
- bounder
- bugger
- buzzard
- cad
- chuff
- churl
- clown
- cretin
- crud [slang]
- crumb [slang]
- cur
- dirtbag [slang]
- dog
- fink
- heel
- hound
- jerk
- joker
- louse
- lout
- pill
- rat
- rat fink
- reptile
- rotter
- schmuck [slang]
- scum
- scumbag [slang]
- scuzzball [slang]
- skunk
- sleaze
- sleazebag [slang]
- sleazeball [slang]
- slime
- slimeball [slang]
- slob
- snake
- so-and-so
- sod [chiefly British]
- stinkard
- stinker
- swine
- toad
- varmint
- vermin
Examples of creep in a Sentence
Verb
She crept toward the edge of the roof and looked over.
I caught him creeping down the stairs to the kitchen.
She crept into bed next to her sleeping husband.
The hours crept by as we waited for morning.
a train creeping through the town
The price of gasoline has crept back up to three dollars a gallon.
A few mistakes crept in during the last revision of the paper.
new words creeping into the language
Noun
I get the creeps every time he walks by.
I hate snakes. They give me the creeps.
That guy gives me the creeps.
See More
Recent Examples on the WebWIRED, 20 Sep. 2023
Early starts to catch the game before the heat of the day, and evening drives to find them as the shadows creep in and the hunts begin.
—Sophie Morgan, Condé Nast Traveler, 19 Sep. 2023
As Halloween creeps toward us, networks and streamers are launching their spooky programming to scare you.
—Sophia Scorziello, Variety, 19 Sep. 2023
Their influence has even crept past the boundaries of country music.
—Vulture, 18 Sep. 2023
And now flood insurance is creeping up as well, which is hitting people in the poorest neighborhoods particularly hard, according to a recent study by New Orleans’ city officials.
—Leslie Kaufman, Anchorage Daily News, 17 Sep. 2023
The crisp air is starting to creep in, calling on us all to unpack our warm mittens, fuzzy hats, and oversized sweaters to enjoy the changing of the season.
—Stacey Leasca, Travel + Leisure, 13 Sep. 2023
Thick foliage creeps from all directions, an oppressive garland of tropical fronds in electric, icey aquamarine; veins of blood-purple snake throughout.
—Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 13 Sep. 2023
And with better protection from the offensive line, which allowed Watson to be sacked 20 times in 2022, Watson can excel and maybe Nick Chubb can creep closer to the NFL’s rushing title.
—Irie Harris, cleveland, 8 Sep. 2023
Noel Murray, Los Angeles Times, 5 Aug. 2023
This isn't too much of a shocker, though, as the camera module creep has been real for several years now.
—Iyaz Akhtar, PCMAG, 4 Aug. 2023
Nonetheless, Roland said, the beetles’ northward creep in recent years over the broad, higher-elevation area known as Broad Pass was a bit of a surprise to him.
—Yereth Rosen, Anchorage Daily News, 2 Aug. 2023
Donald Trump’s political career began with the sense that a number of unsavory characters had breached the system: grifters, con men, racists, creeps.
—Alex Shephard, Washington Post, 6 June 2023
Phelan and Rater are able to answer many questions about what the not-instantaneous creep of Nazi horrors looked like in Amsterdam.
—Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 1 May 2023
In some ways, Anohni sees the mere fact of making an album today as an act of resistance—against the slow, insidious creep of technology into every aspect of our daily lives, and the overwhelming daily onslaught of the attention economy.
—Liam Hess, Vogue, 31 July 2023
One of the most effective ways to address care creep is to think deliberately and to make conscious choices.
—Natalie Gil, refinery29.com, 11 July 2023
Doesn’t matter as long as the drooling creep with requisite glasses and pervert mustache gets his head slammed against a table once more.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 7 July 2023
See More
Verb
Also double-check that prices have not crept back up since the event started.
—WIRED, 20 Sep. 2023
Early starts to catch the game before the heat of the day, and evening drives to find them as the shadows creep in and the hunts begin.
—Sophie Morgan, Condé Nast Traveler, 19 Sep. 2023
As Halloween creeps toward us, networks and streamers are launching their spooky programming to scare you.
—Sophia Scorziello, Variety, 19 Sep. 2023
Their influence has even crept past the boundaries of country music.
—Vulture, 18 Sep. 2023
And now flood insurance is creeping up as well, which is hitting people in the poorest neighborhoods particularly hard, according to a recent study by New Orleans’ city officials.
—Leslie Kaufman, Anchorage Daily News, 17 Sep. 2023
The crisp air is starting to creep in, calling on us all to unpack our warm mittens, fuzzy hats, and oversized sweaters to enjoy the changing of the season.
—Stacey Leasca, Travel + Leisure, 13 Sep. 2023
Thick foliage creeps from all directions, an oppressive garland of tropical fronds in electric, icey aquamarine; veins of blood-purple snake throughout.
—Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 13 Sep. 2023
And with better protection from the offensive line, which allowed Watson to be sacked 20 times in 2022, Watson can excel and maybe Nick Chubb can creep closer to the NFL’s rushing title.
—Irie Harris, cleveland, 8 Sep. 2023
Noun
Rossi is in no way noncommittal, though, about Stella’s mental and emotional state, which has been worn raw by years of managing the whims of an abusive creep.
—Noel Murray, Los Angeles Times, 5 Aug. 2023
This isn't too much of a shocker, though, as the camera module creep has been real for several years now.
—Iyaz Akhtar, PCMAG, 4 Aug. 2023
Nonetheless, Roland said, the beetles’ northward creep in recent years over the broad, higher-elevation area known as Broad Pass was a bit of a surprise to him.
—Yereth Rosen, Anchorage Daily News, 2 Aug. 2023
Donald Trump’s political career began with the sense that a number of unsavory characters had breached the system: grifters, con men, racists, creeps.
—Alex Shephard, Washington Post, 6 June 2023
Phelan and Rater are able to answer many questions about what the not-instantaneous creep of Nazi horrors looked like in Amsterdam.
—Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 1 May 2023
In some ways, Anohni sees the mere fact of making an album today as an act of resistance—against the slow, insidious creep of technology into every aspect of our daily lives, and the overwhelming daily onslaught of the attention economy.
—Liam Hess, Vogue, 31 July 2023
One of the most effective ways to address care creep is to think deliberately and to make conscious choices.
—Natalie Gil, refinery29.com, 11 July 2023
Doesn’t matter as long as the drooling creep with requisite glasses and pervert mustache gets his head slammed against a table once more.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 7 July 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'creep.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Verb and Noun
Middle English crepen, from Old English crēopan; akin to Old Norse krjūpa to creep
First Known Use
Verb
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Noun
1818, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Time Traveler
The first known use of creep was
before the 12th century
Phrases Containing creep
Dictionary Entries Near creep
Cite this Entry
“Creep.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/creep. Accessed 2 Oct. 2023.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
creep
1 of 2 verb
crept
ˈkrept
; creeping
; creeping
1
: to move along with the body close to the ground : move slowly on hands and knees
2
: to advance slowly, timidly, or quietly
the tide crept up the beach
3
: to spread or grow over the ground or a surface
a creeping vine
4
: to slip or gradually shift position
5
: to feel as though insects were crawling on the body
the shriek made my flesh creep
creep
2 of 2 noun1
: a creeping movement
2
a
: a sensation like that of insects creeping over one's flesh
b
: a feeling of horror
—usually used in plural with the
the story gave me the creeps
3
: an unpleasant or hateful person
More from Merriam-Webster on creep
Nglish: Translation of creep for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of creep for Arabic Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about creep
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
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