creeps 1 of 2

Definition of creepsnext
plural of creep

creeps

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of creep
1
as in encroaches
to advance gradually beyond the usual or desirable limits water crept slowly over the top of the tub and onto the floor

Synonyms & Similar Words

2
3
as in crawls
to move slowly with the body close to the ground the kitten crept silently across the floor before suddenly pouncing on the mouse

Synonyms & Similar Words

4

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of creeps
Noun
In the dead of night, a group of armed thieves creeps toward a locked vault. Olivia Potts, Longreads, 28 May 2026 Photos from the area showed cars slowly traveling through the floodwaters as water rises and creeps onto sidewalks in the area. Steven Yablonski, CBS News, 28 May 2026 That tight feeling that creeps in around Sunday afternoon — the one that turns a good weekend into a bracing countdown — has a name, and therapists say your Sunday schedule plays a bigger role in it than most people realize. Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Miami Herald, 27 May 2026 No doubt many creeps of the bracket were resented along the way. Kansas City Star, 24 May 2026 When lawn grass creeps into flower beds, a deep, crisp edge helps, according to Ulanoski. Nadia Hassani, The Spruce, 23 May 2026 The 8%-lit waning crescent moon will sit low on the eastern horizon as dawn's glow creeps into the sky. Anthony Wood, Space.com, 12 May 2026 The tiny silver-green leaves form an incredibly low, dense mat that creeps along the ground. Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 26 Apr. 2026 If the reader cannot answer those questions quickly, doubt creeps in. Jd Barker, Rolling Stone, 16 Apr. 2026
Verb
This is where over-reliance creeps in. Gregory Lipich, Forbes.com, 18 May 2026 Hesitation creeps in, options narrow and teams begin playing within themselves. Rick Burton, Sportico.com, 18 May 2026 Mira’s politics are still primarily shaped by her parents, but the culture creeps in. Anna Wiener, New Yorker, 4 May 2026 Mildew creeps along the corners of the tub. Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Charlotte Observer, 30 Apr. 2026 Win it, and suddenly the series tightens, the doubt creeps in and the path gets a lot more complicated for Orlando. Mike Bianchi, The Orlando Sentinel, 28 Apr. 2026 As the world creeps toward peak travel season, industry leaders are taking notice of the fuel shortages. Justin Klawans, TheWeek, 13 Apr. 2026 The bottom line Concentration risk often creeps into your portfolio over time. Doug Ashburn, Encyclopedia Britannica, 2 Apr. 2026 The same game of legislative chicken now starts anew as the calendar creeps toward April. Steve Bousquet, Sun Sentinel, 14 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for creeps
Noun
  • To relitigate the matter on behalf of Musk only served to underline the conviction that all of these jerks deserved one another.
    Gideon Lewis-Kraus, New Yorker, 20 May 2026
  • Here, witches are real — and so are jerks.
    Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 30 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • Paglen’s ideas, collected between two covers, carve a clean, linear path through our messy neural era, engaging in the kind of big-picture sense-making that books remain well suited to do, even as AI encroaches on this terrain.
    Louis Bury, ARTnews.com, 1 May 2026
  • Meta, Anthropic and Apple all now use TPUs, as Google increasingly encroaches on a market cornered by Nvidia's graphics processing units.
    Katie Tarasov, CNBC, 20 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • Former Mayor Harold Washington appears extensively — including a candid photo of Washington shaking hands with constituents while a young Obama lingers in the background.
    A.D. Quig, Chicago Tribune, 4 June 2026
  • The woman lingers, asking about the food.
    Maddie Connors, Los Angeles Times, 3 June 2026
Verb
  • At sunset, the city starts glowing around you while traffic crawls silently below.
    Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 28 May 2026
  • Critics on the Croisette are starting to resemble that classic comic-strip panel in which an explorer crawls desperately across the sand toward an oasis that’s only a mirage.
    Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 19 May 2026
Verb
  • In a chilling sequence, Dennis ties a garbage bag over Mallory’s head and drags her into the woods.
    Erin Qualey, Vulture, 29 May 2026
  • The United States’ stockpiles of crude oil, gasoline and diesel are falling fast as the war with Iran drags on.
    Kevin Liptak, CNN Money, 28 May 2026
Verb
  • Shai Gilgeous-Alexander apparently isn’t amused by a new board game that pokes fun at the Oklahoma City Thunder star’s reputation for garnering foul calls at the hint of contact by an opposing player.
    Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 29 May 2026
  • Kym is the family fuckup and a guilty party to its biggest tragedy but also constantly pokes the bear as its selfish verbal assassin.
    Chris Feil, Vulture, 1 May 2026
Verb
  • The River Caqueta snakes nearly 1,800 miles into the heart of the Amazon rainforest.
    Jacob Whitehead, New York Times, 27 May 2026
  • The plaster, cave-like living room (complete with a cozy fireplace) served as a backdrop for trivia night; the ice-cold creek, which snakes along the five-acre property, was our personal swimming spot to chase off the heat of the day.
    Aemilia Madden, Vogue, 27 May 2026
Verb
  • At the sound of morning prayers, an older Clarissa awakens from this dream and shuffles out to her lawn, where the leafy bush has been replaced with the industrial skyline of Lagos.
    Lovia Gyarkye, HollywoodReporter, 16 May 2026
  • Tristan returns home and greets James while Siegfried shuffles the woman out the window.
    Alice Burton, Vulture, 12 Jan. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Creeps.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/creeps. Accessed 7 Jun. 2026.

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