krɔ:l v. & n. --v.intr. 1
move slowly,
esp. on hands
and knees. 2 (of an
insect,
snake, etc.) move slowly
with the body close to the ground etc. 3
walk or move slowly (the
train crawled
into the station). 4 (often foll. by to) colloq.
behave obsequiously or ingratiatingly in the
hope of
advantage. 5 (often foll. by with) be covered or filled with crawling or
moving things, or with
people etc. compared to
this. 6 (esp. of the skin)
feel a
creepy sensation. 7
swim with a crawl
stroke. --n. 1 an
act of crawling. 2 a
slow rate of
movement. 3 a high-speed swimming stroke with
alternate overarm movements and
rapid straight-legged kicks. 4 a (usu. in comb.) colloq. a
leisurely journey between places of
interest (church-crawl). b = pub-crawl. øøcrawlingly adv. crawly adj. (in senses 5, 6 of v.). [ME: orig. unkn.:
cf.
Sw. kravla,
Da. kravle]