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• creed
  creed

  noun

  any system, doctrine, or formula of religious belief, as of a denomination.
• Creed
  Creed

  noun

  Frederick. 1871–1957, Canadian inventor, resident in Scotland from 1897, noted for his invention of the teleprinter, first used in 1912

creed

American  

[kreed] / krid /

noun

• creeds
  plural

1. any system, doctrine, or formula of religious belief, as of a denomination.

   Synonyms:

   dogma, credo, conviction, faith

2. any system or codification of belief or of opinion.

   Synonyms:

   dogma, credo, conviction, faith

3. an authoritative, formulated statement of the chief articles of Christian belief, as the Apostles' Creed, the Nicene Creed, or the Athanasian Creed.

4. the creed. Apostles' Creed.

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creed ¹ British  

/ kriːd /

noun

1. a concise, formal statement of the essential articles of Christian belief, such as the Apostles' Creed or the Nicene Creed

2. any statement or system of beliefs or principles

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Creed ² British  

/ kriːd /

noun

1. Frederick. 1871–1957, Canadian inventor, resident in Scotland from 1897, noted for his invention of the teleprinter, first used in 1912

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• creedlessness
  noun
• precreed
  noun
• credal
  adjective
• creedal
  adjective
• creeded
  adjective
• creedless
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• creeds
  plural

Etymology

Origin of creed

First recorded before 1000; Middle English crede, Old English crēda, from Latin crēdō “I believe”; see credo

Explanation

Without reading the long document about the group's beliefs — its creed — he knew he didn't fit in, because he just couldn't bow to the 12-foot statue of a rabbit, no matter what it symbolized. A creed can be a formal doctrine, or system of beliefs, for a church or religious group, or it can be a philosophy, or personal set of beliefs. The origins of the word are in the Latin crēdō, "I believe," once specific to the Christian faith, but by the 17th century it was used for many different faiths. Companies, societies, and disciplines might also adopt a creed — as in a political creed, a national creed, or a management creed — that lays out a particular belief-system or way of doing things.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

creed Creed creeds

The new prime minister looked at ease making an argument and articulating his political creed.

From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2026

The first Republican president, Abraham Lincoln, defined America as dedicated to the Declaration’s creed that all men are created equal.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 2, 2026

That creed is certainly still part of the ideological atmosphere in this country, but multiple generations of Americans since the 1960s have grown up surrounded by contrary evidence.

From Salon ● May 31, 2026

And long before Elon Musk put his brilliant, unnerving innovator’s creed to work, a different industry pioneer dragged the world’s entire manufacturing sector into the era of mass production, creating shock waves again and again.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 2, 2026

The Handdara is a religion without institution, without priests, without hierarchy, without vows, without creed; I am still unable to say whether it has a God or not.

From "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin

Is the Assassin's Creed Black Flag remake worth the 13 year wait?

From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026

“This is the first time in company history that we have generated over $20 billion in sales and revenues in a single quarter,” Chief Executive Joe Creed said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026

Ubisoft released a remake of “Assassin’s Creed IV Black Flag” from 2013 on July 9, right after its fiscal first quarter came to a close.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026

It was the first title released by Vantage Studios, a new subsidiary helming Ubisoft's top franchises including "Assassin's Creed", "Far Cry" and "Rainbow Six".

From Barron's ● Jul. 23, 2026

Diego howled—earning us glares from the preppy parents who probably presumed we were drunk—and the wave of bad music continued to assault our ears as Creed blurred into Nickelback.

From "We Are the Ants" by Shaun David Hutchinson

For decades Auroville held fast to its lofty ideals as a self-governing haven for yoga enthusiasts and seekers of spiritual freedom of "all creeds and nationalities".

From Barron's ● Jun. 25, 2026

What makes Christianity work, and always has, is the gathering together of the faithful to worship in song and in recitation of ancient creeds affirming creation, sin, salvation, and the death and resurrection of Christ.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 19, 2026

The phrase, of disputed origin, is used to suggest a commonality between people of all creeds and races, a suggestion that people are all the same under the skin.

From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2025

Compromise and consensus — the animating creeds of our commonweal — have ebbed away.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 15, 2025

I watched him closely that night, and to me it seemed he was trying to live in both worlds, to be a loyal adherent to all creeds.

From "Educated" by Tara Westover

Related Words

• doctrine
• dogma
• faith
• ideology
• persuasion
• profession
• religion
• tenet