creep up on
phrasal verb
crept up on; creeping up on; creeps up on
informal
: to slowly and quietly move closer to (someone) without being noticed
We tried to creep up on them but they heard our footsteps.
—often used figurativelyOld age creeps up on us.
The deadline had crept up on them.
Examples of creep up on in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Connectivity costs: High-speed internet, mobile data plans, and streaming services stealthily creep up on credit card statements.
—
Joseph Coughlin, Forbes, 4 Mar. 2025
As an allegory for displacement, for the lost sense of self that exile brings, as well as its eventual rediscovery, Yunan creeps up on you.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 25 Feb. 2025
This was only a temporary measure until December 31, however, a date which has soon crept up on the Catalans.
—Tom Sanderson, Forbes, 28 Dec. 2024
While Edge has been creeping up on Chrome—to an extent, Google’s browser still dominates the Windows desktop market with four-times the number of Edge users, even as Microsoft’s browser has grown its market share a couple of points in 2024.
—Zak Doffman, Forbes, 21 Dec. 2024
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Joseph Coughlin, Forbes, 4 Mar. 2025
As an allegory for displacement, for the lost sense of self that exile brings, as well as its eventual rediscovery, Yunan creeps up on you.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 25 Feb. 2025
This was only a temporary measure until December 31, however, a date which has soon crept up on the Catalans.
—Tom Sanderson, Forbes, 28 Dec. 2024
While Edge has been creeping up on Chrome—to an extent, Google’s browser still dominates the Windows desktop market with four-times the number of Edge users, even as Microsoft’s browser has grown its market share a couple of points in 2024.
—Zak Doffman, Forbes, 21 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for creep up on
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Cite this Entry
“Creep up on.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/creep%20up%20on. Accessed 9 Mar. 2025.
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