creature
Americannoun
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an animal, especially a nonhuman.
the creatures of the woods and fields; a creature from outer space.
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anything created, whether animate or inanimate.
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person; human being.
She is a charming creature. The driver of a bus is sometimes an irritable creature.
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an animate being.
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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.
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Scot. and Older U.S. Use. Usually the creature intoxicating liquor, especially whiskey.
He drinks a bit of the creature before bedtime.
noun
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a living being, esp an animal
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something that has been created, whether animate or inanimate
a creature of the imagination
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a human being; person: used as a term of scorn, pity, or endearment
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a person who is dependent upon another; tool or puppet
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of creature
First recorded before 1250–1300; Middle English creature, from Late Latin creātūra “act of creating”; see create, -ure
Explanation
A creature is a living thing: there are flying creatures, sea creatures, and even imaginary creatures, like unicorns. Ever heard of a "creature feature"? That's a horror movie about weird scary creatures and other monsters. But you can call pretty much any living thing a creature. You'll find all kinds of creatures at the zoo, and maybe even a few lurking in your smelly gym shoes. Bears, bugs, birds, and bunnies are all creatures. When you see the word creature, think "It's alive!"
Vocabulary lists containing creature
Beowulf vocabulary
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"Frankenstein"
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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.
See Examples For:
Umpire Bill Miller took a few steps toward the creature, who then scampered into right field.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
Humans and every other vertebrate may share an astonishingly strange ancestor: a tiny creature with a single eye centered on the top of its head.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 26, 2026
A caption alongside it referred to the creature as "Jimothy the raccoon with short spine syndrome".
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
Leonardo da Vinci considered the house cat the most perfect creature on earth.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026
Gelifen—the world’s most magical creature, the joy bird—gave a rasping breath.
From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell
Bayouth finds older women respond frequently to her female-figured sculptures, while a younger crowd is drawn to her catlike creatures.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026
The TVs played scenes from the Harry Potter films and helped suspend disbelief where magical creatures were involved, and the lighting system aided in spellcasting.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026
Calmer ocean conditions around the UK in the summer months help to push jellyfish gently towards the shore, meaning there are often more sightings of the creatures.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
So do the animal-shaped wool carpets that riff on traditional skin rugs by using vegetarian-friendly materials to create colorful, flattened creatures: a fiery, spotted cheetah; a purple-striped dodo; a particularly silly mammoth.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
Then she turned and spoke to the creatures on the sands.
From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
