crawl
1 Americanverb (used without object)
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to move in a prone position with the body resting on or close to the ground, as a worm or caterpillar, or on the hands and knees, as a young child.
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(of plants or vines) to extend tendrils; creep.
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to move or progress slowly or laboriously.
The line of cars crawled behind the slow-moving truck.
The work just crawled until we got the new machines.
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to behave in a remorseful, abject, or cringing manner.
Don't come crawling back to me asking for favors.
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to be, or feel as if, overrun with crawling things.
The hut crawled with lizards and insects.
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Ceramics. (of a glaze) to spread unevenly over the surface of a piece.
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(of paint) to raise or contract because of an imperfect bond with the underlying surface.
verb (used with object)
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to visit or frequent a series of (similar businesses, especially bars).
to crawl the neighborhood pubs.
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Digital Technology. to digitally survey (websites) using a computer program, as in order to index web pages for a search engine.
Search engines are constantly crawling the web.
noun
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the act of crawling; a slow, crawling motion.
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the visiting of a series of similar businesses, especially bars.
a beer crawl;
a museum crawl.
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a slow pace or rate of progress.
Traffic slowed to a crawl.
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Swimming. a stroke in a prone position, characterized by alternate overarm movements combined with the flutter kick.
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Television, Movies. titles that slowly move across a screen, providing information.
noun
verb
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to move slowly, either by dragging the body along the ground or on the hands and knees
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to proceed or move along very slowly or laboriously
the traffic crawled along the road
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to act or behave in a servile manner; fawn; cringe
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to be or feel as if overrun by something unpleasant, esp crawling creatures
the pile of refuse crawled with insects
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(of insects, worms, snakes, etc) to move with the body close to the ground
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to swim the crawl
noun
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a slow creeping pace or motion
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Also called: Australian crawl. front crawl. swimming a stroke in which the feet are kicked like paddles while the arms reach forward and pull back through the water
noun
Usage
What does crawl mean? To crawl is to move along, close to the ground, either by wriggling the body or using hands and knees, as in The baby crawled along the floor on her hands and knees. Many types of animals crawl along the ground, such as worms, caterpillars, and snakesTo crawl also means to creep or to extend tendrils, like a vine up a ladder. More generally, to crawl means to move slowly or with a lot of effort, as in School was so boring today that the time just crawled along. To crawl also means to visit a series of similar businesses, most commonly bars or pubs. A pub crawl is an event during which participants will visit several pubs, one after another. Example: The traffic slowed to a crawl on my way home from work because of an accident.
Synonym Usage
Crawl, creep refer to methods of moving like reptiles or worms, or on all fours. They are frequently interchangeable, but crawl is used of a more prostrate movement than creep : A dog afraid of punishment crawls toward his master. Creep expresses slow progress: A child creeps before walking or running.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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crawlsimple
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crawlssimple
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have crawledperfect
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has crawledperfect
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am crawlingprogressive
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are crawlingprogressive
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is crawlingprogressive
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have been crawlingperfect progressive
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has been crawlingperfect progressive
Past
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crawledsimple
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had crawledperfect
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was crawlingprogressive
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were crawlingprogressive
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had been crawlingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of crawl1
First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English craulen, crallen, from Old Norse krafla; compare Danish kravle “to crawl, creep”
Origin of crawl2
First recorded in 1650–60; from Dutch kraal, from Spanish corral corral; cf. kraal
Explanation
To crawl is to move slowly across the floor on your hands and knees. Before they learn to walk, most babies crawl. You might crawl around looking for a lost earring, or watch a spider crawl across your ceiling. The slow, creeping movement itself is a crawl, too: "Traffic was moving at a crawl." When your dog has fleas, he crawls with them, and if something gives you a creepy, prickling sensation, it makes your skin crawl. Crawl probably comes from the Old Norse krafla, "to claw one's way," which shares a root with crab.
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:
Compared with brachiopods, bivalves have greater energy demands because of their larger bodies and muscular "foot" that allows them to burrow and crawl.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 12, 2026
"She would just look at me. Even with all those tubes and machines attached to her, she would try to reach out, wanting to crawl into my lap," Akhter remembers, in tears.
From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026
Instead, they seize the bull's horns and try to bring it to the ground, and win extra points if they can jump onto its back or crawl underneath its belly.
From Barron's ● Jun. 28, 2026
Who doesn’t want to go on a “Star Wars” cantina crawl?
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 24, 2026
I crawl into my closet so we can talk.
From "Invisible Inkling" by Emily Jenkins
Critics on the Croisette are starting to resemble that classic comic-strip panel in which an explorer crawls desperately across the sand toward an oasis that’s only a mirage.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 19, 2026
The percussion on “2 Hard 4 the Radio” bangs and jumps where so much of the record crawls, and his fleet verse recalls the cadence of his 2018 hit “Nice for What.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 19, 2026
As she crawls, screams, scratches and sneers, Lawrence maintains a soulful balance between Grace’s creeping delirium and her ceaseless dedication to her newborn son.
From Salon ● Nov. 7, 2025
Residents across the Australian states of Queensland and New South Wales have been waiting anxiously as Cyclone Alfred crawls towards them, leaving thousands in the dark.
From BBC ● Mar. 7, 2025
Ahead, the light turns red, and Morgan crawls to a stop.
From "Leah on the Offbeat" by Becky Albertalli
That was only reinforced when they crawled through the group stage here with draws in their first two matches against Egypt and Iran.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026
Roa and his companions initially crawled and then cut a hole to reach the site.
From Barron's ● Jul. 4, 2026
So, while the Dodgers crawled out of the hole with a season-high 17 hits, the steep cost heightens the pressure on the rest of the rotation the rest of the series.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 3, 2026
Once inside, they climbed, rappelled, crawled, and even floated through flooded sections while recording the caves' shapes and fracture patterns.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 2, 2026
John and Tomás got down on their stomachs and crawled to the very edge of the break.
From "Storm Runners" by Roland Smith
“I saw part of that, and what really freaked me out was when she was crawling up upside down and backwards down the stairs — kind of like the spider.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 18, 2026
Per capita gross domestic product has stagnated for about a decade, crawling from $1,380 in 2015 to $1,478 in 2024 at market exchange rates.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 17, 2026
A Nepali climbing guide who went missing on Mount Everest for six days and was feared dead has been found alive after crawling back to Base Camp, officials told AFP on Thursday.
From Barron's ● Jun. 4, 2026
Footage shared by the rescue groups show the cave divers crawling into the cave through narrow, muddy passageways that are almost completely flooded.
From BBC ● May 26, 2026
Seven bit her lip as she stared at her phone screen, nerves crawling like a billion bugs all over her skin.
From "Witchlings" by Claribel A. Ortega
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.
