CREEP

I. intransitive verb (crept; ~ing) Etymology: Middle English crepen, from Old English crēopan; akin to Old Norse krjūpa to ~ Date: before 12th century 1. to move along with the body prone and close to the ground, to move slowly on hands and knees, 2. to go very slowly , to go timidly or cautiously so as to escape notice , to enter or advance gradually so as to be almost unnoticed , to have the sensation of being covered with ~ing things , to spread or grow over a surface rooting at intervals or clinging with tendrils, stems, or aerial roots, 5. to slip or gradually shift position, to change shape permanently from prolonged stress or exposure to high temperatures, II. noun Date: 1818 a movement of or like ~ing , a distressing sensation like that caused by the ~ing of insects over one's flesh, a feed trough accessible only by young animals and used especially to supply special or supplementary feed, the slow change of dimensions of an object from prolonged exposure to high temperature or stress, an unpleasant or obnoxious person, a slow but persistent increase or elevation