Advertisement

Origin and history of creature

creature(n.)

c. 1300, "anything created," hence "a thing" in general, animate or not, but most commonly "a living being," from Old French creature "created being; all creation" (Modern French créature), from Late Latin creatura "a thing created; the creation; a creature," from creatus, past participle of Latin creare "to make, bring forth, produce, beget," from PIE root *ker- (2) "to grow."

Properly three syllables and sometimes so in Elizabethan verse. It is used of humans in limited cases, in contempt, commiseration, or endearment.

The meaning "person who owes his rise and fortune to another" is from 1580s. The sense of "anything that ministers to man's comforts" (1610s) is after I Timothy iv.4 ("Every creature of God is good") and led to jocular use of creature for "whiskey, intoxicating drink" (1630s). Creature-comforts "material comforts" (food, clothing) is from 1650s. Related: Creatural; creaturely.

also from c. 1300

Entries linking to creature

critter(n.)

1815, dialectal or humorous pronunciation of creature.

*ker-(2)

Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to grow."

It might form all or part of: accretion; accrue; cereal; Ceres; concrete; create; creation; creature; Creole; crescendo; crescent; crew (n.) "group of soldiers;" croissant; cru; decrease; Dioscuri; excrescence; excrescent; griot; increase; Kore; procerity; procreate; procreation; recreate; recreation; recruit; sincere.

It might also be the source of: Greek kouros "boy," korē "girl;" Latin crescere "come forth, spring up, grow, thrive, swell," Ceres, goddess of agriculture, creare "to bring forth, create, produce;" Armenian serem "bring forth," serim "be born."

    Advertisement

    More to explore

    wight
    Old English wiht "living being, creature, person; something, anything," from Proto-Germanic *wihti- (source also of Old Saxon wiht "thing, demon," Dutch wicht "a little child," Old High German wiht "thing, creature, demon," German Wicht "creature, little child," Old Norse vettr "
    tool
    Old English tol "instrument, implement used by a craftsman or laborer, weapon," from Proto-Germanic *tōwalan "implement" (source also of Old Norse tol), from a verb stem represented by Old English tawian "prepare" (see taw). The ending is the instrumental suffix -el (1). The figu
    animal
    early 14c., "any sentient living creature" (including humans), from Latin animale "living being, being which breathes," noun use of neuter of animalis (adj.) "animate, living; of the air," from anima "breath, soul; a current of air" (from PIE root *ane- "to breathe;" for sense de
    slipper
    Also in creature-names, such as slipper-limpet (1828), slipper-shell (1825)....
    callow
    From young birds with no feathers, the meaning was extended to any young inexperienced thing or creature, hence "youthful...
    Orca
    Earlier in English, orc, ork "large marine mammal, deadly sea-creature" (by mid-17c.), from French orque, had been used vaguely...
    androcentric
    The man was accepted as the race type without one dissentient voice; and the woman — a strange diverse creature, quite disharmonious...
    stunt
    "to check in growth, to dwarf," 1650s; earlier "bring to an abrupt halt" (c. 1600); "provoke, anger, irritate" (1580s), from obsolete Middle English adjective stunt "foolish, stupid; obstinate," from Old English stunt "stupid, foolish" (as in stuntspræc "foolish talk"), from Prot
    racer
    "one who or that which races," 1640s of persons, 1660s of horses, 1793 of vehicles, by 1809 in American English in reference to a type of snake; agent nouns from race (v.). WHEN a lad, I lived with my father in the then province of New Jersey, where the black snake, with a white
    quarry
    [what is hunted] early 14c., quirre "entrails of deer placed on the hide and given to dogs of the chase as a reward," from Anglo-French quirreie, Old French cuiriee "the spoil, quarry" (Modern French curée), altered (by influence of Old French cuir "skin," from Latin corium "hide

    Share creature

    Advertisement
    Trending
    Dictionary entries near creature
    Advertisement