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crawler

American  
[kraw-ler] / ˈkrɔ lər /

noun

  1. a person or thing that crawls.

  2. Digital Technology. web crawler.

  3. Also called crawler tractor.  any of various large, heavy vehicles or machines that are propelled on endless belts or tracks, especially as used in construction.

  4. hellgrammite.

  5. Often crawlers. a garment with long pants, short sleeves or suspender straps, and sometimes feet for a baby who does not yet walk.

  6. Australian Slang. sycophant.

crawler British  
/ ˈkrɔːlə /

noun

  1. slang a servile flatterer

  2. a person or animal that crawls

  3. an informal name for earthworm

  4. a computer program that is capable of performing recursive searches on the Internet

  5. (plural) a baby's overalls; rompers

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of crawler

1640–50; 1925–30 crawler for def. 4; crawl 1 + -er 1

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

And more recently, there is Browsertrix Cloud, an easier-to-use, automated version of the powerful Browsertrix Crawler, which is popular with volunteers.

From Washington Post • Apr. 8, 2022

Bateman says the idea for the Sandcrawler's massive tank-like treads came from the Nasa Crawler Transporter, a colossal tracked vehicle that lugged the Apollo programme's Saturn rockets to their launch site.

From BBC • Apr. 9, 2019

Both Rapala Shad Raps and Spinner and Night Crawler set ups would be your best bet for some nice fish.

From Seattle Times • Oct. 5, 2014

"The Crawler" races like a gritty Thin Lizzy song.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 14, 2014

I am sure Crawler would have no objection to carry his trencher, or Page to hold up the skirts of his gown as he stalks into chapel.

From The Book of Snobs by Thackeray, William Makepeace

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.