creepy-crawly

American

[kree-pee-kraw-lee] / ˈkri piˈkrɔ li /

noun

plural

creepy-crawlies

a creeping or crawling animal, especially an insect.

adjective

creepy-crawlier, creepy-crawliest

creepy.

creepy-crawly British

noun

a small crawling creature

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

adjective

feeling or causing a sensation as of creatures crawling on one's skin

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of creepy-crawly

First recorded in 1855–60; see origin at creep, crawl ¹, -y ¹

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.

In the jungle, Nella has screamed her way through creepy-crawly and snake-infested bush tucker trials.

From BBC • Nov. 22, 2023

Then, taking charge, she dispatched bursts of brittle chords, tossed off creepy-crawly runs and kept bringing out both the sweetly melodic and industriously steely elements of the three-movement work.

From New York Times • Oct. 7, 2021

Chocolate Meltdown: Hershey’s After Dark Three pastry chefs are locked in an abandoned Hersheypark overnight to create the most-inspired take on a creepy-crawly carnival in the premiere of this new culinary series.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 27, 2021

While suspenseful, this creepy-crawly tale had a disappointedly predictable ending.

From Slate • Sep. 2, 2018

“I don’t like creepy-crawly things. Spiders. Roaches. Crawdads.”

From "The Lions of Little Rock" by Kristin Levine

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023