creep
nounEtymology
From Middle English crepen, from Old English crēopan (“to creep, crawl”), from Proto-West Germanic *kreupan, from Proto-Germanic *kreupaną (“to twist, creep”), from Proto-Indo-European *grewbʰ- (“to turn, wind”). Cognates Cognate with West Frisian krûpe (“to creep, crawl”), Central Franconian kruffe (“to creep, crawl”), Dutch kruipen (“to creep, crawl”), Low German krepen, krupen (“to creep, crawl”), Danish krybe (“to creep”), Faroese krúpa (“to creep”), Icelandic krjúpa (“to kneel down, to genuflect, to get down on one's knees”), Norwegian Bokmål krype (“to creep”), Norwegian Nynorsk krjupa, krjupe, krypa, krype (“to creep, crawl”), Swedish krypa (“to creep, crawl”). The noun is derived from the verb. Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *grewbʰ-der. Proto-Germanic *kreupaną Proto-West Germanic *kreupan Old English crēopan Middle English crepen English creep
10 senses
- 1The movement of something that creeps (like worms or snails).
- 2A relatively small gradual change, variation or…
- 3A slight displacement of an object; the slight movement…
- 4The gradual expansion or proliferation of something…
- 5In sewn books, the tendency of pages on the inside of a…
- 6An increase in strain with time; the gradual flow or…
- 7The imperceptible downslope movement of surface rock.
- 8Someone creepy (annoyingly unpleasant), especially one…
- 9A person who engages in sexually inappropriate behaviour…
- 10A barrier with small openings used to keep large animals…
The movement of something that creeps (like worms or snails).
A relatively small gradual change, variation or deviation (from a planned value) in a measure.
A slight displacement of an object; the slight movement of something.
The gradual expansion or proliferation of something beyond its original goals or boundaries, considered negatively.
- Christmas creep
- feature creep
2 more examples
- instruction creep
- mission creep
Media, Publishing In sewn books, the tendency of pages on the inside of a quire to stand out farther than those on the outside of it.
An increase in strain with time; the gradual flow or deformation of a material under stress.
Materials science
Derogatory, Informal Someone creepy (annoyingly unpleasant), especially one who is strange or eccentric.
- "You mentioned some others," I said. "More creeps," she told me. '"That guy was plain looking for trouble. You know, he starts hanging out with some of the shooters Whitey Tass keeps around, angling for an introduction to the big man himself, and he's damn lucky he got picked up by the fuzz before Whitey got sore. He runs too big an operation in the city to be bugged by a pig like Yard. One day Lou Steubal tried to get an inside track with Whitey, levering him on account of what Whitey did to his sister, and they found Lou in the drink. It looked like Lou got gassed up and fell in, but don't try to tell me that. Whitey had him tapped out."1968, Mickey Spillane, Delta Factor:
- But I'm a creep / I'm a weirdo / What the hell am I doing here? / I don't belong here1992, “Creep”, in Pablo Honey, performed by Radiohead:
3 more examples
- […]the catalyst was getting locked in the bathroom of her office with her landlord. "Two hours with that creep," she said. "You can't believe it[…]he got a ladder and came through the bathroom window and almost broke his balls on that pointed tampax box he made us buy. He brought hammers and screws and drills, but we were trapped. It got dark[…]He kept chipping away at the lock, and between the chipping he talked to me about his back and a couple of knee-operations. Finally someone tapped on the door from the outside and it opened, just like that.[…]"1992, Thaisa Frank, A Brief History of Camouflage, page 113:
- "Why're you working your butt off for that creep? He takes your money, borrows your car, and treats you like shit. Can't you tell he's on drugs?"1994, Bapsi Sidhwa, An American Brat, page 168:
- "Outrageous!" said Tylan. "You know, without Fingers and baby Trev, we could have won." "Yeah, Trevor, what a creep — running off home at half-time like that," said Frankie.1995, Bob Cattell, Glory in the Cup, page 36:
Derogatory, Especially, Informal A person who engages in sexually inappropriate behaviour or sexual harassment.
- It was whispered that the priest was a pervert. Was he? The girls said he was a creep. I didn't quite know what it meant to be a creep, but it was obviously not a good thing. It was said that he sometimes fondled the girls, their breasts, and said lousy things to them, that they were beautiful or something like that.[…]Disgusting guys. I thought the guy at Bústaðir was a creep. An old man who liked to dance.2016, Jón Gnarr, Hrefna Lind Heimisdóttir, translated by Lytton Smith, The Pirate, page 201:
- Saiera shuddered through an exaggerated shiver. "He's a creep. He was a creep in high school, and he's been a creep ever since. Look..." She flipped to the index, found what she was looking for, and fanned the pages until she reached the one she wanted. "Here he is. A young Andy Gluck, chubby as a penguin, stared out of the page from behind round wire-frame glasses. A camera hung from a strap around his neck. […] "He doesn't look creepy," I said. "Kind of nerdy, in a harmless way. "Looks can be deceiving. See that camera? He was always going around with that camera, snapping pictures. Some girls caught him trying to get 'up skirt' shots while they sat at their desks.[…]"2022, Scott Bell, Pest Cemetery, page 235:
Agriculture, Business, Lifestyle A barrier with small openings used to keep large animals out while allowing smaller animals to pass through.
- Derived terms
38 terms
creepmeter, downhill creep, soil creep, upcreep, bracket creep, Christmas creep, Coble creep, diffusion creep, dislocation creep, Eurocreep, feature creep, focus creep, function creep, instruction creep, lifestyle creep, mission creep, Nabarro-Herring creep, Pollyanna creep, power creep, requirement creep, scope creep, season creep, text creep, tip creep, creepdar, creep-shame, creep shot, Democreep, creepfest, creepify, creepish, creep joint, creepo, creepshot, creepsome, creeptacular, creeptastic, creepware