Creole

[ kree-ohl ]

/ ˈkri oʊl /

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See synonyms for Creole on Thesaurus.com

noun

a person born in the West Indies or Spanish America but of European, usually Spanish, ancestry.

a person born in Louisiana but of usually French ancestry.

Sometimes creole . a person of mixed Black and European, especially French or Spanish, ancestry who speaks a creolized form of French or Spanish.

creole language.

the creolized French language of the descendants of the original settlers of Louisiana.Compare Cajun (def. 2).

Haitian Creole.

Usually creole .Archaic. a Black person born in the Americas, as distinguished from one brought there from Africa.

adjective

Sometimes creole . relating to or characteristic of a Creole or Creoles.

Usually creole .Cooking. indicating a spicy sauce or dish, especially one made with tomatoes, peppers, onions, celery, and seasonings, and often served with rice.

Sometimes creole . bred or growing in a country, but of foreign origin, as an animal or plant.

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Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of Creole

First recorded in 1595–1605; from French, from Spanish criollo, from Portuguese crioulo “native,” derivative of criar “to bring up,” from Latin creāre; see create

OTHER WORDS FROM Creole

half-Cre·ole, adjective

Words nearby Creole

crenellated, crenshaw melon, crenulate, crenulation, creodont, Creole, creole continuum, creole-fish, creole language, creole tomato, creolize

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use Creole in a sentence

We’re encouraging learners to use Haitian Creole in those restaurants.
How Duolingo added Haitian Creole to its language library|Charlotte Hu|February 21, 2022|Popular-Science
Hosted by Michelob Ultra, festivities include live bands, delicious local Creole cuisine, and a lively atmosphere.
11 of Our Favorite Races to Run in 2022|Molly Hanson|January 25, 2022|Outside Online
A Haitian community leader named John helps translate from Haitian Creole to Spanish while we sit in the home she’s made for herself in Little Haiti, a tiny village in the remote hills of Tijuana, Mexico.
Caught Between U.S. Policies and Instability at Home, Haitian Migrants in Tijuana Are in a State of Limbo|Jasmine Aguilera/Tijuana, Mexico|July 22, 2021|Time
While Remy and I talk, a father and his young son read through a children’s book and an Alice in Wonderland coloring book written in Haitian Creole.
Caught Between U.S. Policies and Instability at Home, Haitian Migrants in Tijuana Are in a State of Limbo|Jasmine Aguilera/Tijuana, Mexico|July 22, 2021|Time

She was going through a divorce, and was having a tough time finding work because she spoke solely Creole.
As COVID-19 Ravaged This Iowa City, Officials Discovered Meatpacking Executives Were the Ones in Charge|by Michael Grabell and Bernice Yeung|December 21, 2020|ProPublica
It was one of five separate Masses, including in Spanish, English, Haitian-Creole, and Italian.
Mother Cabrini, Saint of the Green Card|Michael Luongo|November 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The priest for the Creole ceremony was Father Marcel Saint Jean.
Mother Cabrini, Saint of the Green Card|Michael Luongo|November 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
There was instead the very best and LaChanze proved how right it is that her name means “the Charmed One” in Creole.
A 9/11 Widow’s Perfect ‘Amazing Grace’ at the Ground Zero Museum|Michael Daly|May 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The grilled langoustines and seafood gratin are out of this world, as is the locally flavored creole rice.
Gal With a Suitcase|Jolie Hunt|July 10, 2010|DAILY BEAST
The most authentic Creole cooking is found in private homes.
Secrets of Creole and Cajun Food|Mary Goodbody|February 17, 2010|DAILY BEAST
The action was at first a little confusing to Edna, but she soon lent herself readily to the Creole's gentle caress.
The Awakening and Selected Short Stories|Kate Chopin
You know that I come of tough fiber—of that old Creole race of Pontelliers that dry up and finally blow away.
The Awakening and Selected Short Stories|Kate Chopin
On the arrival of the court many of the old Creole families hastened to the capital to greet their sovereigns.
Journal of a Voyage to Brazil|Maria Graham
The Creole cane takes the hill, and, though less productive, is supposed to yield sugar of a better quality.
Journal of a Voyage to Brazil|Maria Graham
Many of the Indian women have married the creole Portuguese; intermarriages between creole women and Indian men are more rare.
Journal of a Voyage to Brazil|Maria Graham

British Dictionary definitions for Creole (1 of 2)

creole

/ (ˈkriːəʊl) /

noun

a language that has its origin in extended contact between two language communities, one of which is generally European. It incorporates features from each and constitutes the mother tongue of a communityCompare pidgin

adjective

denoting, relating to, or characteristic of creole

(of a sauce or dish) containing or cooked with tomatoes, green peppers, onions, etc

Word Origin for creole

C17: via French and Spanish probably from Portuguese crioulo slave born in one's household, person of European ancestry born in the colonies, probably from criar to bring up, from Latin creāre to create

British Dictionary definitions for Creole (2 of 2)

Creole

/ (ˈkriːəʊl) /

noun

(sometimes not capital) (in the Caribbean and Latin America)

a native-born person of European, esp Spanish, ancestry
a native-born person of mixed European and African ancestry who speaks a French or Spanish creole
a native-born Black person as distinguished from one brought from Africa

(in Louisiana and other Gulf States of the US) a native-born person of French ancestry

the creolized French spoken in Louisiana, esp in New Orleans

adjective

of, relating to, or characteristic of any of these peoples

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