as in leisurely
moving or proceeding at less than the normal, desirable, or required speed
the crawling pace of the narrative is really frustrating
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in creeping
to move slowly with the body close to the ground
the time we had to crawl through a narrow passageway from one cave to another
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in dragging
to move slowly
the weekend traffic on the road to the beach just crawled
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in poking
to move or act slowly
the deadline is fast approaching, so this is no time to crawl
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of crawling
Marcia Dunn, Chicago Tribune, 2 Apr. 2026
One provider recommended a different formula, but Laura responded that her son was burning calories by kicking in his bed, crawling and wheeling around in his wheelchair.
—Amelia Mugavero, CBS News, 1 Apr. 2026
King acknowledged that getting there need not involve crawling through mud.
—Charles Bethea, New Yorker, 30 Mar. 2026
But for all its twists and turns, Boston and her cast, writers, and directors never let up on the promise of the show’s title and the skin-crawling sensations the pilot’s opening scenes (of Rachel and Nicky’s wedding and its insane, bloody aftermath) giddily pile on.
—Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 28 Mar. 2026
Cops said Woods exited his Land Rover by crawling out of its passenger-side window.
—Brian Niemietz, New York Daily News, 27 Mar. 2026
Maritime trade is crawling at Georgia’s ports, but the state authority that operates the nation’s third-busiest cargo terminals isn’t throttling back its expansion efforts.
—Adam Van Brimmer, AJC.com, 24 Mar. 2026
An unusually strong high pressure system in the middle to upper levels of the atmosphere has been crawling across the southwestern United States in the past day or so, forecasters said.
—Roberto Villalpando, Austin American Statesman, 21 Mar. 2026
Another pair were crawling on a kitchen prep table.
—David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 20 Mar. 2026
Verb
Until Isaacman’s program makeover, Artemis III was crawling toward a moon landing no sooner than 2029.
—Marcia Dunn, Chicago Tribune, 2 Apr. 2026
One provider recommended a different formula, but Laura responded that her son was burning calories by kicking in his bed, crawling and wheeling around in his wheelchair.
—Amelia Mugavero, CBS News, 1 Apr. 2026
King acknowledged that getting there need not involve crawling through mud.
—Charles Bethea, New Yorker, 30 Mar. 2026
But for all its twists and turns, Boston and her cast, writers, and directors never let up on the promise of the show’s title and the skin-crawling sensations the pilot’s opening scenes (of Rachel and Nicky’s wedding and its insane, bloody aftermath) giddily pile on.
—Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 28 Mar. 2026
Cops said Woods exited his Land Rover by crawling out of its passenger-side window.
—Brian Niemietz, New York Daily News, 27 Mar. 2026
Maritime trade is crawling at Georgia’s ports, but the state authority that operates the nation’s third-busiest cargo terminals isn’t throttling back its expansion efforts.
—Adam Van Brimmer, AJC.com, 24 Mar. 2026
An unusually strong high pressure system in the middle to upper levels of the atmosphere has been crawling across the southwestern United States in the past day or so, forecasters said.
—Roberto Villalpando, Austin American Statesman, 21 Mar. 2026
Another pair were crawling on a kitchen prep table.
—David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 20 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for crawling
Adjective
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So the coming months are a period for cocktails in bigger glasses, vessels that welcome more liquid for more leisurely sipping.—
Scott Hocker,
TheWeek,
20 Mar. 2026
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Otherwise, consider the more posh neighborhoods of Chelsea and Kensington—ideal for leisurely days spent browsing boutiques and art galleries or strolling over to Notting Hill for coffee and craft bakeries.—
Katharine Sohn,
Architectural Digest,
20 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The technology is sweeping almost every profession while also creeping into people’s personal lives, sometimes with devastating consequences.—
Sharon Bernstein,
Sacbee.com,
1 Apr. 2026
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Her works explored Oedipal urges and creeping fascism.—
Laura Regensdorf,
Vogue,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
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But right now, while the press is still bad and the lawsuits are still dragging, sellers should take a breath.—
Matthew Sedacca,
Curbed,
31 Mar. 2026
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The SaaSpocalypse, ultimately, was a knee-jerk, existential reaction to where AI is (slowly, in many contexts) dragging the tech stack.—
Allie Garfinkle,
Fortune,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Upon the umpteenth retelling, Jules (Jeff Wilbusch)—who witnessed the gory death of Rachel’s mother (Victoria Pedretti) as a little boy and therefore wholeheartedly believes in the curse—begins poking holes in the story.—
Sam Reed,
Glamour,
2 Apr. 2026
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While the 1930s and 1940s did see some instances of carnival poking fun at the tyranny of the Nazi regime (none of which, it should be noted, went unpunished), Birdsall and other scholars maintain that the festival was, first and foremost, an avenue for propaganda.—
Tim Brinkhof,
JSTOR Daily,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
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In the dotcom era, the economists explained, the economy reflected the latter scenario, where gains failed to show, bursting the bubble.—
Jake Angelo,
Fortune,
1 Apr. 2026
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Lendeborg today feels like an overnight sensation, bursting on the scene in his maize-and-blue out of nowhere.—
Dana O’Neil,
CNN Money,
27 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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In fact, businesses hired workers at their slowest pace since 2011, excluding the onset of the pandemic in 2020.—
Morgan Chittum,
CNBC,
3 Apr. 2026
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The area’s large tourist population contributes a constant volume of unfamiliar drivers to already heavily congested roads, with traffic patterns that shift significantly between peak tourist season and the summer months but never truly slow to manageable levels on the area’s major corridors.—
Anton Lucanus
April 3,
Miami Herald,
3 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Attempts to resolve ecological responsibility through strict localism often risk sliding into cultural provincialism or nationalist enclosure—fantasies of purity that ignore how deeply entangled our lives already are.—
Manuela Moscoso,
Artforum,
2 Apr. 2026
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Hydroplaning is the term for when a vehicle begins sliding uncontrollably on wet roads.—
KANSAS CITY STAR WEATHER BOT,
Kansas City Star,
2 Apr. 2026
Verb
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These chips spend most of their energy shuffling data between a memory unit and a processor.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
20 Mar. 2026
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So what better way to cap all that off than closing out the Oscars — even if the clip played while the audience was shuffling out of the theater and calling their Ubers.—
Tom Smyth,
Vulture,
16 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Crawling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/crawling. Accessed 4 Apr. 2026.
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