creep 1 of 2

creep

2 of 2

verb

1
as in to encroach
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 to crawl
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 creep
Noun
As fall creeps closer, so does the end of daylight saving time. Shelby Slade, AZCentral.com, 10 Sep. 2025 Ditto the Hammer Studios output of the 1950s and ’60s, Bernie Wrightson’s definitive illustrations of the Creature, oodles of Gothic literature, Roger Corman’s Poe pictures, and Mario Bava’s retina-searing color creep shows. David Fear, Rolling Stone, 9 Sep. 2025
Verb
This porch-ready planting includes purple fountain grass, flowering kale, coralbells, creeping Jenny, and marguerite daisies. Maria Sabella, Better Homes & Gardens, 15 Sep. 2025 Inflation has crept higher over the past several months in part because tariffs are – slowly – starting to boost prices. David Goldman, CNN Money, 15 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for creep
Recent Examples of Synonyms for creep
Noun
  • Check out its jerk chicken roll filled with carrots, cabbage, onions, cheese and jerk mayo; or try the jerk chicken wings and sides of rice and peas, plantains and cabbage.
    Loán Lake, Charlotte Observer, 16 Sep. 2025
  • No one says, 'This guy's a jerk, that guy is that,' or anything like that.
    Julio Cesar Valdera Morales, MSNBC Newsweek, 15 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • And despite the encroaching waves, which nibbled more of our NewFarms every month.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 11 Sep. 2025
  • Instead, vague references to a second Civil War invoke our current reality, with its stark ideological divides, encroaching political violence, and calls for retribution that have only escalated in recent days.
    Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 11 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Physical activity has long been associated with lower dementia risk in multiple studies, so much so that the 2024 Lancet Commission identified it as one of 14 factors responsible for preventing or delaying approximately 45% of dementia cases.
    Kristen Rogers, CNN Money, 20 Sep. 2025
  • The abundance of salmon in Katmai National Park and Bristol Bay in southern Alaska is contributing to a drop in conflict among the bears this year compared to the 2024 competition, which was delayed when one large bear killed another.
    Bill Chappell, NPR, 19 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • There’s tunnels to crawl through, regular live performances from Quixotic that synchronize with the experience, and a functioning 240-seat theater that plans to host film festivals.
    Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 18 Sep. 2025
  • Some coast with healthy double-digit conversion rates, while others crawl along at 5% or 6%.
    Jon Stojan, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Any resulting court case within the Defense Department's own legal system could result in counter lawsuits, which could drag on for months.
    Anne Flaherty, ABC News, 17 Sep. 2025
  • Need to know Nvidia probe drags on.
    Evelyn Cheng, CNBC, 17 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • The announcement, sparse on specific details, captured the trepidation and lingering ambivalences that AI companies have about policing young users, even as OpenAI begins to implement these basic features nearly three years after the launch of ChatGPT.
    Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 18 Sep. 2025
  • The performance was impacted by the lingering effects of operational challenges, delivery delays and store closures initiated last year.
    Sandra Salibian, Footwear News, 18 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Lines of hundreds of guests snaked around the inside of the department store (which takes up an entire city block in Manhattan), with onlookers snapping photos quizzically.
    Anika Reed, USA Today, 13 Sep. 2025
  • The Wild Flint The Flint snakes down Georgia, a safe distance from I-85 and I-75, before joining the Chattahoochee River in Lake Seminole and cutting across the Florida Panhandle as the Apalachicola River.
    David Hanson, Southern Living, 13 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Keep communication open by avoiding poking fun at these practices.
    Ashleigh N. DeLuca, Parents, 16 Sep. 2025
  • Gibson proceeded to the Children’s Chorus room, where two staffers welcomed her to poke through the costume racks.
    Sarah Larson, New Yorker, 15 Sep. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Creep.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/creep. Accessed 21 Sep. 2025.

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