creaky

[kree-kee]

adjective

creakier, creakiest 

1. creaking or apt to creak.

   a creaky stairway.

2. run-down; dilapidated.

   a creaky shack.

3. Phonetics.,  (of the voice) produced by vibration of a small portion of the vocal cords while the arytenoid cartilages are held together, with little breath being released; laryngealized.

Other Word Forms

• creakily adverb
• creakiness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of creaky¹

First recorded in 1825–35; creak + -y ¹

Example Sentences

The old woman repeated the phrase in her creaky, accented English, like an ancient Russian parrot.

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To think that some creaky old saying, too long even to stitch onto a pillow, had the power to solve her problems!

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It turned out that paying a bit extra was the perfect compromise: something for my earlier, adventurous self to sample, and comfort to stretch out our creaky middle-aged legs for Jeff.

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For many, the game that was fondly and famously described as “America’s national pastime” began to simply feel more like America’s past, a slow-moving, creaky relic of a bygone era.

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I remember walking up the creaky stairs of the house to our room and feeling like I was walking somewhere with high elevation.

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Related Words

• battered 
• broken-down 
• dilapidated 
• feeble 
• flimsy 
• frail 
• infirm 
• ramshackle 
• rickety 
• run down 
• seedy 
• shabby