I. ˈkrēˌōl noun
( -s )
Etymology: French créole, from Spanish criollo, from Portuguese crioulo slave born in his master's house, Negro born in the colonies, white person born in the colonies, probably diminutive of cria slave brought up in his master's house, from criar to bring up, from Latin creare to create, beget — more at crescent
1. usually capitalized : one of native birth but of European descent — used in the West Indies, in Spanish America, and formerly in French settlements of No. America
2. usually capitalized : a white person descended from early French or sometimes Spanish settlers of the southern United States especially in the Gulf states and preserving a characteristic form of French speech and culture
3. usually capitalized
a. : a person of mixed French and Negro or Spanish and Negro descent speaking a dialect of French or Spanish — used especially in Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida
b. Alaska : a person of mixed Russian and Eskimo or Indian descent
4. usually capitalized : any of several creolized languages: as
a. : the creolized French spoken by many Negroes in southern Louisiana
b. : the creolized French spoken by the great majority of the inhabitants of Haiti — called also Haitian Creole
5. or creolefish : a serranoid market fish ( Paranthias furcifer ) from tropical America
Synonyms: see dialect
II. adjective
1. usually capitalized : being a Creole : of or belonging to the Creole group or culture
creole landowners
2. sometimes capitalized , in Louisiana & the West Indies : of native origin or production : of the local variety
creole cattle
creole vegetables
3. often capitalized : being or having the characteristics of a creolized language
a creole dialect
the creole French of Saint Lucia
4. sometimes capitalized : of, belonging to, or characteristic of native-born people of European (as Spanish) descent resident especially in Spanish America
a creole culture neither Indian nor Iberian — G.M.Foster
5. of food : prepared in a style characterized by the use of rice, okra, tomatoes, peppers, and high seasonings
creole sauce
lobster creole