creeper

American  

[kree-per] / ˈkri pər /

noun

1. a person or thing that creeps.

2. Botany. a plant that grows upon or just beneath the surface of the ground, or upon any other surface, sending out rootlets from the stem, as ivy and couch grass.

3. Often creepers. a one-piece garment for an infant, the lower portion resembling briefs or having legs extending to the knees, with snaps across the crotch for convenience in diapering.

4. Chiefly Northeastern U.S. a spiked iron plate worn on the shoe to prevent slipping on ice, rock, etc.

5. Also called brothel creeper.  Informal. a shoe with a thick, soft sole.

   She wore a miniskirt and creepers.

6. Also called cradle.  Automotive. a flat framework on casters, on which a mechanic lies while working under an automobile or the like.

7. Ornithology. any of various birds that creep or climb about on trees, especially of the family Certhiidae, as Certhia americana brown creeper, or tree creeper, of the Northern Hemisphere.

8. a domestic fowl having malformed, short legs, due to a genetic defect.

9. a grappling device for dragging a river, lake, etc.

10. Slang. Also creep a sneak thief.

11. Slang. a person who makes persistent sexual advances toward someone, or who cheats on a sexual partner.

12. Slang. creep.

13. Slang. a person who follows someone persistently or stealthily; a stalker.

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creeper British  

/ ˈkriːpə /

noun

1. a person or animal that creeps

2. a plant, such as the ivy or periwinkle, that grows by creeping

3. Also called: tree creeper.  any small songbird of the family Certhiidae of the N hemisphere, having a brown-and-white plumage and slender downward-curving bill. They creep up trees to feed on insects

4. a hooked instrument for dragging deep water

5. Also called: cradle.  a flat board or framework mounted on casters, used to lie on when working under cars

6. Also called: daisy cutter.  cricket a bowled ball that keeps low or travels along the ground

7. either of a pair of low iron supports for logs in a hearth

8. informal a shoe with a soft sole

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Etymology

Origin of creeper

First recorded before 1000; Middle English crepere, Old English crēopere; see origin at creep, -er ¹

Explanation

A creeper is a plant that grows very low to the ground or close to a wall or fence. Many types of ivy and other vines are creepers. You might want to create some privacy in your yard by planting a creeper beside your chain link fence — it will creep along the ground and up the fence itself, forming a leafy barrier between you and your neighbors. Other kinds of creepers are small birds that tend to stay on the ground or creep around in trees and bushes. You can also use this word informally to mean someone who acts in a creepy, or inappropriate, way.

Example Sentences

Kittelberger photographed the pictured 'Akikiki, also called Kauai's creeper, in the Alaka'i Wilderness Preserve in 2022, when it was believed around 70 or so remained in the wild; today, only one individual remains.

From Science Daily • Nov. 27, 2024

A short teaser trailer shows a green creeper character from the game scuttle into the middle of a black screen before exploding in a pixelated grey cloud.

From BBC • May 30, 2024

As Donoghue writes, “What’s between them grows like a creeper that covers the ugliest bricks and drainpipes in living green.”

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 25, 2023

Native to North America, they also eat small berries from our native plants such as Virginia creeper.

From New York Times • Jun. 2, 2023

“But you don’t have to be such a creeper about it.”

From "Made You Up" by Francesca Zappia