creature

[kree-cher]

noun

1. an animal, especially a nonhuman.

   the creatures of the woods and fields; a creature from outer space.

2. anything created, whether animate or inanimate.

3. person; human being.

   She is a charming creature. The driver of a bus is sometimes an irritable creature.

4. an animate being.

5. a person whose position or fortune is owed to someone or something and who continues under the control or influence of that person or thing.

   The cardinal was a creature of Louis XI.

6. Scot. and Older U.S. Use.,  Usually the creature intoxicating liquor, especially whiskey.

   He drinks a bit of the creature before bedtime.

creature

/ ˈkriːtʃə /

noun

1. a living being, esp an animal

2. something that has been created, whether animate or inanimate

   a creature of the imagination

3. a human being; person: used as a term of scorn, pity, or endearment

4. a person who is dependent upon another; tool or puppet

Other Word Forms

• creatureliness noun
• creatural adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of creature¹

First recorded before 1250–1300; Middle English creature, from Late Latin creātūra “act of creating”; create, -ure

Word History and Origins

Origin of creature¹

C13: from Church Latin crēatūra, from Latin crēare to create

Example Sentences

“It had long been thought that we were the only creatures on earth that used and made tools. ‘Man the Toolmaker’ is how we were defined ...”

From Los Angeles Times

Rather, they are merely Halloween-inspired, containing candies that are shaped like bats and cats — undeniably two of the spookiest creatures.

From Salon

In Aso’s manga, just after the Joker figure appears, Arisu envisions a scene of a large, humanoid creature poling a boat full of figures across a body of water toward a distant shore.

From Salon

On the off chance that an adversary pierces its tough exoskeleton, they risk being injured if not outright dissolved by the creature’s highly concentrated acidic blood.

From Salon

“I believe that … every one of God’s creatures was created equal. I believe that everyone should be treated equal, that’s the way I was raised and that’s the way I live my life.”

From Salon

Related Words

• animal 
• critter 
• fellow 
• individual 
• living thing www.thesaurus.com
• man 
• person 
• soul 
• woman