crawl

Meaning

1. To creep; to move slowly on hands and knees, or by dragging the body along the ground.
2. To move forward slowly, with frequent stops.
3. To act in a servile manner.
4. Followed by with: see crawl with.
5. To feel a swarming sensation.
6. To swim using the crawl stroke.
7. To move over (an area) on hands and knees.
8. To move over (an area) slowly, with frequent stops.
9. To visit files or web sites in order to index them for searching.

creep

slither

move slowly

advance slowly

walk slowly

crawl about

crawl along

creep along

drag oneself

drag oneself along

lie hidden

slip and fall

move stealthily

shuffle along

slide along

go and come

crawl on knees

fall into swoon

teem in

glide gently

go slowly

go on the belly

creeping motion

spread branches

creeping motion squirm

motion squirm

creep in

Frequency

Pronounced as (IPA)

/kɹɔːl/

From Middle English crawlen, crewlen, creulen, crallen, *cravelen, from Old Norse krafla (compare Danish kravle (“to crawl, creep”), Swedish kravla, kräla)), from Proto-Germanic *krablōną (compare Dutch krabbelen, German Low German krabbeln, German krabbeln), frequentative of *krabbōną (“to scratch, scrape”). Compare also West Frisian kreauwelje (“to crawl”), Dutch krevelen, krieuwelen (“to crawl”), German Low German kribbeln, German kribbeln (“to creep, crawl, tingle”). See also crab, crabble.