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
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 The Financial Times stepped inside the home of Rirkrit Tiravanija on the outskirts of Chiang Mai, where lush greenery spills through expansive windows and creeps into the interior itself. Devorah Lauter, ARTnews.com, 15 Apr. 2026 Everybody on the right creeps left, and everybody on the left creeps right. Charlotte Observer, 30 Mar. 2026 Fear creeps in as cases continue to rise The lack of official narrative may have led local folks to a premature sense of safety, believing that the outbreak had ended even as cases continue to add up. Deidre McPhillips, CNN Money, 23 Mar. 2026 The draft is interesting because there aren’t the top-of-the-board type options like last year (Colston Loveland and Tyler Warren) but the closer late April creeps, the deeper many people believe the tight end crop is on the whole. Parker Gabriel, Denver Post, 21 Mar. 2026 Ad dollars are crucial as the cost of staging the tournament creeps ever upwards. Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 20 Mar. 2026
Verb
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 But when the stakes are high, the hours long, the margin for error thin and the pressure rises, fear often creeps in and looks for somewhere to land. Paula Ferrada, Forbes.com, 13 Mar. 2026 This time round, though, an unfortunate silliness sometimes creeps in, where the film risks tipping over Shakespearean-size emotions into embarrassing bathos. Miriam Balanescu, IndieWire, 5 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for creeps
Noun
  • Here, witches are real — and so are jerks.
    Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 30 Apr. 2026
  • This was just the beginning of us young anarchists becoming judgmental jerks.
    Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 7 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
  • The filmmaker rarely lingers, making brief moments of grace — like Gabrielle peeking in at her mom and stepdad taking a nap — all the more resonant for their evanescence.
    Jon Frosch, HollywoodReporter, 13 May 2026
  • Warmer and more humid weather moves in on Friday and lingers through the weekend.
    Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 13 May 2026
Verb
  • Leclerc crawls through the long right-hand Turn 12, where Lindblad moves ahead again.
    Alex Kalinauckas, New York Times, 11 May 2026
  • Think about how often your toddler crawls near the dog bed or your kids toss pet toys around the living room.
    Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • Analysts have repeatedly warned that if the war drags on and supply chains are disrupted for long enough, prices for gas and a range of other goods could continue to climb.
    Wyatte Grantham-Philips, Chicago Tribune, 14 May 2026
  • Our older cat has no interest in them whatsoever, but our newest baby, Pip, drags his all around the house.
    Jeaneen Russell, PEOPLE, 13 May 2026
Verb
  • 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
  • Instead, the robot simply pokes through it.
    Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 30 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • Legislation in Louisiana seeks to address the Supreme Court ruling by scrapping a district that snakes over 200 miles (321 kilometers) northwest from the capital, Baton Rouge, to Shreveport, creating a voting bloc with a majority of Black residents.
    ABC News, ABC News, 14 May 2026
  • Another car snakes down the road.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 14 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • Tristan returns home and greets James while Siegfried shuffles the woman out the window.
    Alice Burton, Vulture, 12 Jan. 2026
  • That is not unique — Major League Baseball’s offseason shuffles along at a deliberate pace, just as the Dodgers historically have liked.
    Katie Woo, New York Times, 7 Jan. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Creeps.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/creeps. Accessed 18 May. 2026.

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