crawl

I

(New American Roget's College Thesaurus)

v. i. creep, lag, drag; cringe, fawn, cower, grovel. See servility, slowness, lowness.

II

(Roget's IV) v.

1. [To move like an insect]

Syn. creep, worm along, wriggle, squirm, slither, move on hands and knees, go on hands and knees, writhe, grovel, snake, go on all fours*, worm one's way*, go on one's belly*; see also grovel .

2. [To move slowly]

Syn. inch, inch along, drag, plod, hang back, poke, go at a snail's pace; see also lag 1 .

Syn.- crawl and creep are often used interchangeably, but crawl , in its strict usage, suggests movement by dragging the prone body along the ground [ a snake crawls] and creep suggests movement, often furtive, on all fours [ the cat crept up the stairs ] ; figuratively, crawl connotes slowness, abjectness, or servility and creep connotes slow, stealthy, or insinuating progress

III

(Roget's 3 Superthesaurus) v.

creep, go on all fours, *belly, worm, inch, wriggle, drag, *go at a snail's pace, writhe, grovel.

IV

(Roget's Thesaurus II) I verb 1. To move along in a crouching or prone position: creep, slide, snake, worm. See MOVE. 2. To advance slowly: creep, drag, inch. See FAST. 3. To be abundantly filled or richly supplied: abound, bristle, flow, overflow, pullulate, swarm, teem. See BIG, RICH. 4. To experience a repugnant tingling sensation: creep. See FEAR, LIKE. II noun A very slow rate of speed: creep, snail's pace. See FAST.