Where does “creep” come from?
Creep comes from Middle English crepen, from Old English crēopan, from Proto-Germanic kreupaną, from Proto-Indo-European ger-.
creep (English): To move slowly with the abdomen close to the...
Definitions
- To move slowly with the abdomen close to the...
Ancestry of “creep”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle English | crepen | To move in a subtle or secretive way; To enter or... |
| 2 | Old English | crēopan | to creep, crawl |
| 3 | Proto-West Germanic | *kreupan | — |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | kreupaną | to twist, to creep |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | ger- | to turn, bend, twist, wind; to tie, bind... |
Words derived from “creep”