Link Centre Dictionary

creak

UK/kɹiːk/ US/ˈkrik/ uncommon
verb (1) noun (1)

verb

1.

make a high-pitched, screeching noise

  • “The door creaked when I opened it slowly”
Synonyms

noun

1.

a squeaking sound

  • “the creak of the floorboards gave him away”
Synonyms

Origin

From Middle English creken, criken, metathesis of Old English cearcian (“to chatter, creak, crash, gnash”), from Proto-West Germanic *krakōn (“to crash, crack, creak”), from Proto-Indo-European *gerh₂- (“to make a sound, cry hoarsely”), ultimately of imitative origin. Compare also Old English crǣccettan, crācettan (“to croak”), Albanian grykë (“throat”). More at crack.

Phrases

  • a creaking door hangs long on its hinges
  • a creaking door hangs longest

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.