Synonyms of crawling

crawling 1 of 2

adjective

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

• leisurely
• slow
• creeping
• dragging
• poking
• lagging
• poky
• slowing
• sluggish
• dilatory
• unhurried
• dallying
• laggard
• dillydallying
• dawdling
• snaillike
• tardy
• languid
• lounging
• snail-paced
• lethargic
• deliberate
• loitering
• ambling
• loafing
• lingering
• shuffling
• inert
• inactive
• plodding
• strolling
• measured
• decelerating
• inching
• stalling
• procrastinating
• tarrying
• heavy-footed
• slow-footed
• filibustering

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• rapid
• rushing
• running
• flying
• lightning
• swift
• quick
• speedy
• fast
• breathless
• racing
• speeding
• hasty
• dizzy
• bolting
• ready
• fleet
• whirlwind
• brisk
• rocketing
• meteoric
• snappy
• expeditious
• scooting
• scurrying
• prompt
• hurrying
• whirling
• zipping
• scudding
• barreling
• breakneck
• accelerated
• warp-speed
• whisking
• careering
• rushed
• quickened
• hastened
• hurried

crawling

2 of 2

verb

present participle of crawl

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

• creeping
• sliding
• snaking
• slithering
• wriggling
• crouching
• tiptoeing
• sneaking
• squatting
• groveling
• worming
• bellying
• stealing
• inching
• edging
• skulking
• nosing

2

as in dragging

to move slowly

the weekend traffic on the road to the beach just crawled

Synonyms & Similar Words

• dragging
• creeping
• shuffling
• poking
• inching
• limping
• slouching
• oozing
• snailing
• creaking (along)
• plodding
• nosing
• shambling
• trudging
• tramping
• lumbering

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• flying
• speeding
• racing
• floating
• gliding
• sailing
• whizzing
• zipping
• tearing
• hurrying

3

as in poking

to move or act slowly

the deadline is fast approaching, so this is no time to crawl

Synonyms & Similar Words

• dragging
• poking
• delaying
• lingering
• creeping
• strolling
• playing
• shuffling
• loitering
• dawdling
• lagging
• moping
• stalling
• falling behind
• diddling
• lounging
• dropping behind
• hanging fire
• lollygagging
• marking time
• tarrying
• staggering
• dallying
• idling
• dillydallying
• dragging one's feet
• sauntering
• taking one's time
• loafing
• ambling
• inching
• shilly-shallying
• fiddling (around)
• hanging (around or out)
• lolling
• puttering (around)
• fooling around
• decelerating
• pottering (around)
• trifling
• monkeying (around)
• messing around
• plodding
• lumbering
• procrastinating
• easing
• slowing (down or up)
• temporizing
• filibustering

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• flying
• running
• tearing
• scurrying
• scooting
• rushing
• ripping
• hurrying
• whizzing
• whirling
• racing
• speeding
• zipping
• bolting
• hastening
• dashing
• scudding
• whisking
• barreling
• darting
• coursing
• scrambling
• careering
• rocketing
• hurtling
• humping
• running
• hustling
• bowling
• stampeding
• trotting
• galloping
• sprinting
• breezing
• jogging
• accelerating
• quickening
• hotfooting (it)
• speeding (up)
• overtaking
• outrunning
• outpacing
• catching up
• outstripping
• fast-forwarding

4

as in bursting

to be copiously supplied

something must be up, as city hall is crawling with reporters

Synonyms & Similar Words

• bursting
• buzzing
• humming
• bulging
• swarming
• teeming
• brimming
• abounding
• pullulating
• bustling
• bristling
• overflowing

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• lacking
• wanting
• needing

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of crawling

Verb

One of the groups was seen leaving about three hours afterward, according to the NYPD, while the second odd circumstance ended after individuals were seen crawling out and leaving in a vehicle more than two and a half hours after. — Amethyst Martinez, USA Today, 24 Aug. 2026

Nidhi imagined the baby crawling around in her mother’s body, desperately seeking the uterus, and, failing to find it in its proper place, quietly shrivelling up and dying. — Madhuri Vijay, New Yorker, 16 Aug. 2026

That happened in New York City in 2018, when at least a half dozen city buses were taken out of service after reports of bedbugs crawling on seats. — ABC News, 15 Aug. 2026

Below, Wood spoke to Deadline about the making of Brand New Day and the web-crawling details hidden within its narrative walls. — Destiny Jackson, Deadline, 15 Aug. 2026

Sacramento was crawling Saturday as crowds packed Bugtopia, winding between tables and clustering around displays with the restless motion of a human-sized ant colony. — Naomi Taxay, Sacbee.com, 15 Aug. 2026

Tests on Boston Dynamics’ Atlas, Unitree’s G1 and Boston Dynamics’ Spot showed the robots could perform crawling, cartwheels, handstands, soccer kicks and other complex movements across different robotic body types. — Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 12 Aug. 2026

Meanwhile in Broward County, a restaurant had two dozen live roaches inside the dishwasher, under a food warmer and chest freezer, and crawling on a wall. — Kari Barnett, Sun Sentinel, 12 Aug. 2026

Vhagar dies in the crash and Caraxes succumbs to his injuries a few days after crawling out and into the bowls of Harrenhal. — James Grebey, Vulture, 10 Aug. 2026