the creeps

Idioms  

1. Also, the willies. A sensation of horror or repugnance, as in That weird man gives me the creeps, or I get the willies when I hear that dirge music. The first of these colloquial terms alludes to a sensation of something crawling on one's skin. Charles Dickens used it in David Copperfield (1849) to describe a physical ailment: “She was constantly complaining of the cold and of its occasioning a visitation in her back, which she called ‘the creeps.’” But soon after it was used to describe fear and loathing. The variant dates from the late 1800s, and both its allusion and origin are unclear.

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Example Sentences

Now Crawley is up against a New Zealand team that gives him the creeps.

From BBC • Dec. 5, 2024

Through her, women can feel like they're laughing in the faces of the creeps and weirdoes who want to take away their freedom and happiness.

From Salon • Aug. 19, 2024

Many pointed to the Astro home monitoring robot launched in 2021 that, at $1,600, remains niche and was criticized for giving some consumers the creeps.

From Reuters • Sep. 19, 2023

At the 115-year-old Niles Hotel — where ancient bullet holes pock the tin ceiling by the downstairs saloon — getting the creeps is part of the appeal.

From Los Angeles Times • May 26, 2023

Knowing what I knew and not knowing what if anything Grandpa knew, all this funning and politeness gave me the creeps.

From "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns