creep up on

phrasal verb

crept up on; creeping up on; creeps up on
informal
: to slowly and quietly move closer to (someone) without being noticed
We tried to creep up on them but they heard our footsteps.
often used figuratively
Old age creeps up on us.
The deadline had crept up on them.

Examples of creep up on in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Usage data for these water coolers suggests attendance is slowly creeping up on Fridays and Mondays, though rates of use are still well below pre-pandemic levels. Ryan Hogg, Fortune Europe, 24 Feb. 2024 The 24-inch iMac (creeping up on its second birthday) may not get an M2 version at all, and there's still conflicting evidence about whether Apple is planning a larger Apple Silicon iMac to replace the 27-inch Intel model or the iMac Pro. Andrew Cunningham, Ars Technica, 6 Feb. 2023 Typically, the values will creep up on repeat testing until a tumor eventually appears on a scan. Mara Buchbinder, STAT, 29 Oct. 2023 Riley fired Grinch with games against No. 6 Oregon and rival UCLA remaining and the early-signing period creeping up on Dec. 20. Thuc Nhi Nguyen, Los Angeles Times, 7 Nov. 2023 Then, the valet appeared out of the shadows like Batman creeping up on us. Dave Schilling, Los Angeles Times, 11 Oct. 2023 Lead guitarist Brown explains that, in his own experience as a musician, mental health issues can slowly creep up on tour when things are typically hectic. Marisa Whitaker, Spin, 3 Oct. 2023 Sign up This crisis in American democracy crept up on many of us. Heather Cox Richardson, The New Republic, 26 Sep. 2023 The Blazers have reportedly not engaged in trade talks with Miami but have recently talked with teams about a potential deal with the start of training camp creeping up on Oct. 3. Afentres, oregonlive, 16 Sep. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'creep up on.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Dictionary Entries Near creep up on

Cite this Entry

“Creep up on.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/creep%20up%20on. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

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