1
as in encroached
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
Relevance
2
as in lingered
to move or act slowly
that Friday afternoon we were just creeping, waiting for the bell to sound so that we could start the long weekend
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
4
as in dragged
to move slowly
the class hour seems to creep by
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of crept
What had once been weekend drinking crept into weeknights.
—
Brock Keeling, Oc Register, 27 Jan. 2026
As responders handled the scene, cars crept past on the roadways, dusted white.
—Miriam Fauzia, Dallas Morning News, 24 Jan. 2026
However, dynamic pricing has quietly crept into far more areas of our daily lives than ticketing.
—David Carlucci, New York Daily News, 21 Jan. 2026
Even searches for ethnic slurs hurled at Danish people — language that has historically crept into the American lexicon to dehumanize wartime enemies — come up thin.
—John C. Moritz, Austin American Statesman, 18 Jan. 2026
Smart was 14 when street preacher Brian David Mitchell, then 48, crept into her bedroom in the middle of the night on June 5, 2002, and abducted her at knifepoint.
—Kc Baker, PEOPLE, 18 Jan. 2026
The speedometer crept toward 100 kilometers per hour.
—Deni Ellis Béchard, Scientific American, 13 Jan. 2026
The Orwellian state of affairs has crept into the language.
—Boris Muñoz, Time, 12 Jan. 2026
Geller and his son, Mason, were among the families caught in the chaos, bottlenecked on Palisades Drive as the fire crept closer.
—Gio Insignares, CBS News, 11 Jan. 2026
Brock Keeling, Oc Register, 27 Jan. 2026
As responders handled the scene, cars crept past on the roadways, dusted white.
—Miriam Fauzia, Dallas Morning News, 24 Jan. 2026
However, dynamic pricing has quietly crept into far more areas of our daily lives than ticketing.
—David Carlucci, New York Daily News, 21 Jan. 2026
Even searches for ethnic slurs hurled at Danish people — language that has historically crept into the American lexicon to dehumanize wartime enemies — come up thin.
—John C. Moritz, Austin American Statesman, 18 Jan. 2026
Smart was 14 when street preacher Brian David Mitchell, then 48, crept into her bedroom in the middle of the night on June 5, 2002, and abducted her at knifepoint.
—Kc Baker, PEOPLE, 18 Jan. 2026
The speedometer crept toward 100 kilometers per hour.
—Deni Ellis Béchard, Scientific American, 13 Jan. 2026
The Orwellian state of affairs has crept into the language.
—Boris Muñoz, Time, 12 Jan. 2026
Geller and his son, Mason, were among the families caught in the chaos, bottlenecked on Palisades Drive as the fire crept closer.
—Gio Insignares, CBS News, 11 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for crept
Verb
-
In an era when IP is king at the theatrical box office, particularly when it’s encroached upon by streaming, what’s the trick to figuring out if an original project can play to a mass audience or a Gen Z one?—
Anthony D'Alessandro,
Deadline,
22 Jan. 2026
-
Palace intrigue encroached on his confidence at times.—
Bennett Durando,
Denver Post,
6 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The cold air seemed to push south and east and then lingered for much of the week rather than retreating.—
Kenna Hughes-Castleberry,
Space.com,
4 Feb. 2026
-
That pink fantasy extended into a room overflowing with candy and treats, where guests lingered for photo ops and at beauty stations to test the new fragrances and lip oils, reformulated and coming in 16 shades.—
Ryma Chikhoune,
Footwear News,
4 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Mergers have crawled since 2021 and were finally expected to rebound last year.—
Luisa Beltran,
Sportico.com,
29 Jan. 2026
-
The young man belly-crawled on the ice to reach the panicked dog and pulled the animal out of the water, according to the outlet.—
Sam Gillette,
PEOPLE,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The company pulled the plug on its Cruise robotaxi business in 2024 in the wake of a high-profile incident in which a San Francisco pedestrian was dragged under the car.—
Alexei Oreskovic,
Fortune,
30 Jan. 2026
-
The stretch is just short of New York City’s record cold stretch, which dragged on for 16 days.—
Jessica Schladebeck,
New York Daily News,
30 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Even worse, disaster reimbursement delays, delayed housing repairs, and the holdup of infrastructure rebuilding have fueled anger in the communities that are hardest hit.—
Samantha-Jo Roth,
The Washington Examiner,
4 Feb. 2026
-
Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes.—
Scott Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
3 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Austria’s Nina Ortlieb, the day’s first skier, slid down and tumbled into the netting in the same spot as Vonn.—
Zack Pierce,
New York Times,
30 Jan. 2026
-
Taking part in a World Cup race in Crans Montana, Vonn lost control while attempting to land a jump on the upper portion of the course and slid into the safety netting.—
Chuck Schilken,
Los Angeles Times,
30 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Lock mode proved invaluable on loose climbs, Hill Descent took the stress out of steep drop-offs, and Auto seamlessly shuffled between two- and four-wheel drive as conditions changed.—
Fergus Scholes,
TheWeek,
30 Jan. 2026
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Key Background The ranks of the world’s wealthiest people have shuffled in recent months.—
Ty Roush,
Forbes.com,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
This is not the first time Cornyn has poked fun at Paxton’s romantic history.—
Sarah Bahari,
Dallas Morning News,
4 Feb. 2026
-
The Jacksonville incident poked at the tension.—
Jerry Brewer,
New York Times,
3 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Crept.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/crept. Accessed 5 Feb. 2026.
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