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.
Recent Examples on the WebJames Poniewozik, New York Times, 6 Apr. 2024
Best Newcomer Next on our list is Penguin, who’ve crept up into the CBD world as a brand with exceptional value and consistency.
—Amber Smith, Discover Magazine, 3 Apr. 2024
Management is increasingly portrayed as a creeping ailment in the omniverse of the singular rock artist.
—Andrew O’Hagan, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2024
An annual inflation measure watched closely by the Federal Reserve crept higher in February, its first rise in five months and a sign the central bank could remain wary about cutting interest rates too soon.
—Paul Davidson, USA TODAY, 29 Mar. 2024
The tally crept up a couple thousand the following year before skyrocketing to 42,425 in 2022, as legal protections faded and state support funds dwindled.
—Jaime Moore-Carrillo, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 28 Mar. 2024
Ever since California departments and agencies started implementing hybrid work rules, critics have suggested that sooner or later, the state will creep back toward a full-time in-office model.
—Andrew Sheeler, Sacramento Bee, 28 Mar. 2024
Gabriel tried to distract himself with the tactile sensations of farming: wet dirt stiffening his hands and massing under his nails; cold creeping through his jeans and long underwear; humidity swelling through his sinuses.
—Lily Meyer, The Atlantic, 25 Mar. 2024
And Jude’s movie alludes to a creeping cataclysm of the everyday—a sense that our lives are being gradually stolen from us, one endless commute, meaningless task, and crushingly inadequate paycheck at a time.
—Justin Chang, The New Yorker, 22 Mar. 2024
Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 29 Feb. 2024
The larger, Deep Down size of this lure can reach depths of twenty feet when trolled, can be pulled at a creep at 1 MPH, and runs well at up to 4 MPH (1.5 to 2.5 MPH is the most common speed for walleyes).
—David A. Rose, Field & Stream, 20 Mar. 2024
Navigating the gig economy can be made easier by thinking of your cumulative income sources as a business, budgeting to avoid lifestyle creep, making moves to manage taxes, and investing according to your goals.
—Cicely Jones, Forbes, 22 Feb. 2024
This flurry of new research highlights two aspects of the same problem: the slow creep of college graduates into jobs that don’t require college degrees.
—Preston Cooper, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024
The nature of ad creep is that marketers will eventually find your eyeballs.
—Kate Lindsay, The Atlantic, 27 Feb. 2024
König is a creep for the ages, and Stevens has a lip-smacking good time being solicitous but casually skeevy with Gretchen while showing an inordinate interest in Alma.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 16 Feb. 2024
Lifestyle creep can take the form of buying more conveniences — like ordering food in more often — or buying more expensive or higher-quality items, like sturdier hiking boots or a better brand of skin care products.
—Chanelle Bessette Of Nerdwallet, Quartz, 6 Feb. 2024
May plays Henrietta, a very rich, very awkward botanist with zero social skills who is targeted by a gold-digging creep (the excellent grump, Mr. Walter Matthau).
—Debby Wolfinsohn, EW.com, 4 Feb. 2024
Verb
The term, of course, comes from gymnastics, part of a creeping sportsification of pop-culture criticism that has also given us assorted TV power rankings and myriad March Madness-style brackets.
—James Poniewozik, New York Times, 6 Apr. 2024
Best Newcomer Next on our list is Penguin, who’ve crept up into the CBD world as a brand with exceptional value and consistency.
—Amber Smith, Discover Magazine, 3 Apr. 2024
Management is increasingly portrayed as a creeping ailment in the omniverse of the singular rock artist.
—Andrew O’Hagan, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2024
An annual inflation measure watched closely by the Federal Reserve crept higher in February, its first rise in five months and a sign the central bank could remain wary about cutting interest rates too soon.
—Paul Davidson, USA TODAY, 29 Mar. 2024
The tally crept up a couple thousand the following year before skyrocketing to 42,425 in 2022, as legal protections faded and state support funds dwindled.
—Jaime Moore-Carrillo, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 28 Mar. 2024
Ever since California departments and agencies started implementing hybrid work rules, critics have suggested that sooner or later, the state will creep back toward a full-time in-office model.
—Andrew Sheeler, Sacramento Bee, 28 Mar. 2024
Gabriel tried to distract himself with the tactile sensations of farming: wet dirt stiffening his hands and massing under his nails; cold creeping through his jeans and long underwear; humidity swelling through his sinuses.
—Lily Meyer, The Atlantic, 25 Mar. 2024
And Jude’s movie alludes to a creeping cataclysm of the everyday—a sense that our lives are being gradually stolen from us, one endless commute, meaningless task, and crushingly inadequate paycheck at a time.
—Justin Chang, The New Yorker, 22 Mar. 2024
Noun
As a creep, a romantic, or an action star, the actor always brings intensity and passion to his best projects.
—Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 29 Feb. 2024
The larger, Deep Down size of this lure can reach depths of twenty feet when trolled, can be pulled at a creep at 1 MPH, and runs well at up to 4 MPH (1.5 to 2.5 MPH is the most common speed for walleyes).
—David A. Rose, Field & Stream, 20 Mar. 2024
Navigating the gig economy can be made easier by thinking of your cumulative income sources as a business, budgeting to avoid lifestyle creep, making moves to manage taxes, and investing according to your goals.
—Cicely Jones, Forbes, 22 Feb. 2024
This flurry of new research highlights two aspects of the same problem: the slow creep of college graduates into jobs that don’t require college degrees.
—Preston Cooper, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024
The nature of ad creep is that marketers will eventually find your eyeballs.
—Kate Lindsay, The Atlantic, 27 Feb. 2024
König is a creep for the ages, and Stevens has a lip-smacking good time being solicitous but casually skeevy with Gretchen while showing an inordinate interest in Alma.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 16 Feb. 2024
Lifestyle creep can take the form of buying more conveniences — like ordering food in more often — or buying more expensive or higher-quality items, like sturdier hiking boots or a better brand of skin care products.
—Chanelle Bessette Of Nerdwallet, Quartz, 6 Feb. 2024
May plays Henrietta, a very rich, very awkward botanist with zero social skills who is targeted by a gold-digging creep (the excellent grump, Mr. Walter Matthau).
—Debby Wolfinsohn, EW.com, 4 Feb. 2024
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 16 Apr. 2024.
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
Share