Meaning & Definition of word "Crawl"

Crawl

/krɔːl/

1. an act of crawling.
- Example: The toddler's crawl across the carpet was adorable.
2. a slow or tedious movement.
- Example: We experienced a crawl of a few miles before the parade started.

1. to move on the hands and knees with the body close to the ground.
- Example: The baby began to crawl across the living room floor.
2. to move slowly, often in a way that is tedious or uncomfortable.
- Example: The traffic crawled along the highway during rush hour.
3. to creep or move in a specified direction.
- Example: He watched the ants crawl up the wall.

Middle English 'crawlen', from Old English 'crāwlan' (to crawl, creep).

crawl out of:

to emerge slowly from a situation or place

crawl back:

to return slowly and often with difficulty

crawl space:

a shallow space beneath a floor, often used for storage

creep:

to move slowly and carefully in order to avoid being heard or noticed

slither:

to move smoothly over a surface, often in a winding or serpentine manner

scramble:

to climb or move quickly and awkwardly

Meaning: to behave submissively

Example Sentence: He always crawls to the teachers for good grades.

Meaning: to move through social situations in a sneaky way

Example Sentence: She likes to crawl into parties uninvited.