cream
Americannoun
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the fatty part of milk, which rises to the surface when the liquid is allowed to stand unless homogenized.
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a soft solid or thick liquid containing medicaments or other specific ingredients, applied externally for a prophylactic, therapeutic, or cosmetic purpose.
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Usually creams. a soft-centered confection of fondant or fudge coated with chocolate.
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a purée or soup containing cream or milk.
cream of tomato soup.
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the best part of anything.
the cream of society.
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a yellowish white; light tint of yellow or buff.
verb (used without object)
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to form cream.
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to froth; foam.
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Informal. to advance or favor only the wealthiest, most skilled or talented, etc., especially so as to reap the benefits oneself.
Management is creaming by advancing only the most productive workers.
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Slang: Vulgar. Also cream one's jeans.
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to have an orgasm, especially to ejaculate or experience glandular lubrication of the vagina.
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to be overcome, as in rapturous admiration or delight.
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verb (used with object)
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to work (butter and sugar, or the like) to a smooth, creamy mass.
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to prepare (chicken, oysters, vegetables, etc.) with cream, milk, or a cream sauce.
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to allow (milk) to form cream.
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to skim (milk).
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to separate as cream.
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to take the cream or best part of.
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to use a cosmetic cream on.
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to add cream to (tea, coffee, etc.).
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Slang.
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to beat or damage severely; lambaste.
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to defeat decisively.
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to accomplish, especially to pass (a test or course), with great ease and success.
She creamed the math test, getting the highest grade in the class.
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adjective
idioms
noun
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the fatty part of milk, which rises to the top if the milk is allowed to stand
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( as modifier )
cream buns
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anything resembling cream in consistency
shoe cream
beauty cream
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the best one or most essential part of something; pick
the cream of the bunch
the cream of the joke
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a soup containing cream or milk
cream of chicken soup
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any of various dishes, cakes, biscuits, etc, resembling or containing cream
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a confection made of fondant or soft fudge, often covered in chocolate
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a full-bodied sweet sherry
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a yellowish-white colour
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( as adjective )
cream wallpaper
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verb
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(tr) to skim or otherwise separate the cream from (milk)
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(tr) to beat (foodstuffs, esp butter and sugar) to a light creamy consistency
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(intr) to form cream
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(tr) to add or apply cream or any creamlike substance to
to cream one's face
to cream coffee
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to take away the best part of
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(tr) to prepare or cook (vegetables, chicken, etc) with cream or milk
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to allow (milk) to form a layer of cream on its surface or (of milk) to form such a layer
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slang (tr) to beat thoroughly
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slang (intr) (of a man) to ejaculate during orgasm
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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creamsimple
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creamssimple
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have creamedperfect
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has creamedperfect
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am creamingprogressive
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are creamingprogressive
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is creamingprogressive
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have been creamingperfect progressive
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has been creamingperfect progressive
Past
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creamedsimple
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had creamedperfect
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was creamingprogressive
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were creamingprogressive
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had been creamingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of cream
1300–50; Middle English creme < Anglo-French, Old French cresme < Late Latin chrīsma chrism
Explanation
Cream is the part of milk that's especially rich, creamy, and fatty. Many people like to add cream to their coffee. Heavy cream can be whipped until it's thick, and light cream might be added to a soup or sauce to add richness. Another kind of cream is a thick lotion, like a skin cream or a night cream. When you cream ingredients together, you mix them until they're fluffy. Calling someone "the cream of the crop," means they're the very best at what they do, and when you cream someone in a game of tennis, you win easily.
Vocabulary lists containing cream
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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.
See Examples For:
Barrier paper can be a difficult surface to bond, and using heat isn't suitable for heat sensitive food products like ice cream or chocolate.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
It's a mammoth task: The vast majority of the city's 20,500 licensed food carts -- selling pretzels, peanuts and ice cream -- rely on generators to power stoves, freezers and ventilators.
From Barron's ● Jul. 25, 2026
It’s got a good cream top, and the shop has a cool vibe and ambience.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
The mayor recently proposed reforms to some regulations on small businesses, like no longer requiring restaurants to obtain a special permit to serve ice cream.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
The line at the ice cream stand was shorter than it had been all day, so they got their cones quickly, Maya-Jade ordering the strawberry and chocolate without even asking his preference.
From "Not Nothing" by Gayle Forman
Unlike the plant-based moisturizers I had been using before this experiment, the tallow-based creams lingered on my skin for hours.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026
The executive aims to modernize the Columbus, Ohio-based retailer of fragrances, scented candles, body creams and decorative soaps through an expanded digital presence, refreshed product mix and more-creative marketing.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
Pistachio cold foam now perches atop iced coffees from nationwide chains, Dubai chocolate knock-offs sit at every grocery checkout stand and boutique patisseries fill croissants with pistachio butters and creams.
From Salon ● May 6, 2026
Social media has raised the profile of so-called “dirty soda,” a once-niche trend that involves mixing soda with shots of flavored creams, flavored syrup or pureed fruit.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 29, 2026
She is given a list of pediatricians, and coundess brochures on breast-feeding, and bonding, and immunizing, and samples of baby shampoos and Q-Tips and creams.
From "The Namesake" by Jhumpa Lahiri
We’re big on breakfast for dinner, so maybe we’d have some poached eggs on toast or poached eggs on creamed spinach.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026
“Then we went to the far north side of Chicago to a Lithuanian neighborhood to play some grizzled old guys upstairs at the top of an old, smoky bar. They creamed us.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026
Sink into one of the plush leather banquettes to nosh on steakhouse classics like steak tartare, creamed kale and the most incredible double cheeseburger topped with in-house American cheese and dill aioli.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 1, 2024
It is so nourishing and satisfying, sort of like a cabbage version of creamed spinach, but with a buttery breadcrumb topping.
From Salon ● Mar. 14, 2024
Today’s white blood cell is yesterday’s creamed spinach.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
"When we have that participation gap, creaming people off the top and potentially sending them elsewhere to institutions in England doesn't feel right."
From BBC ● Mar. 31, 2025
“I spend most of my time rubbing creams all over my body. … Face cream, eye cream, foot cream, just constantly creaming myself.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 17, 2024
The addition of one substance doubled the available latex and that yield was increased by 12-fold when a creaming agent was added for purification.
From Science Daily ● Jan. 23, 2024
Some recipes for roll-out sugar cookies might tell you to use a different technique, but I like to use the creaming method for mine.
From Salon ● Dec. 19, 2021
It was then that she went through her beauty routine, a cleansing, creaming ritual, which on Saturday nights included washing her hair.
From "In Cold Blood" by Truman Capote
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.
