creak

creak

English

Alternative forms

• crik (obsolete)

Etymology

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-Germanic *krakōną, from Proto-Indo-European *gerh₂- (“to make a sound, cry hoarsely”), ultimately of imitative origin.[1]

Compare also Old English crǣccettan, crācettan (“to croak”), Albanian grykë (“throat”). More at crack.

Pronunciation

• enPR: krēk, IPA^(key): /kɹiːk/

  • Audio (UK)

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• Homophone: creek
• Rhymes: -iːk

Noun

creak (plural creaks)

1. The sound produced by anything that creaks; a creaking.

Translations

the sound produced by anything that creaks; a creaking

Bulgarian: скърцане n (skǎrcane), скрибуцане n (skribucane) Chinese: Mandarin: 吱呀 (zhīya), 呀 (zh) (yā), 咿 (zh) (yī), 吱吱 (zh) (zhīzhī), 咯吱 (zh) (gēzhī) Czech: vrzání n, skřípání (cs) n, skřípot m, zaskřípění n, zavrzání n, skřípění n Danish: knagen c, knirken c Esperanto: knaro (eo) Finnish: natina (fi), narina (fi), kitinä French: craquement (fr) m German: Knarren (de) n, Quietschen n Hungarian: nyikorgás, csikorgás (hu), recsegés (hu), ropogás (hu), reccsenés (hu) Italian: cric (it) m, scricchiolio (it) m Japanese: きいきい (kīkī) Portuguese: rangido m Romanian: scârțâit (ro) n Russian: скри́п (ru) m (skríp) Spanish: crujido (es) m Swedish: knarr (sv), knak (sv)

Verb

creak (third-person singular simple present creaks, present participle creaking, simple past and past participle creaked)

1. (intransitive) To make a prolonged sharp grating or squeaking sound, as by the friction of hard substances.
   • 1856, Eleanor Marx-Aveling (translator), Gustave Flaubert (author), Madame Bovary, Part III, Chapter 10:

     Then when the four ropes were arranged the coffin was placed upon them. He watched it descend; it seemed descending for ever. At last a thud was heard; the ropes creaked as they were drawn up.

   • 1901, W. W. Jacobs, The Monkey's Paw:

     He heard the creaking of the bolt as it came slowly back, and at the same moment he found the monkey's paw, and frantically breathed his third and last wish.

2. (transitive) To produce a creaking sound with.
   • c. 1604–1605 (date written), William Shakespeare, “All’s VVell, that Ends VVell”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, OCLC 606515358, [Act II, scene i]:

     Creaking my shoes on the plain masonry.

   • a. 1941, Theodore Roethke, "On the Road to Woodlawn", in Open House (1941)

     I miss the polished brass, the powerful black horses,

     The drivers creaking the seats of the baroque hearses

3. (intransitive, figurative) To suffer from strain or old age.
   • 2002, Stanley Wells, Shakespeare Survey (volume 39, page 205)

     Fascinating though this high-minded re-reading was, certain crucial joints of the play creaked a good deal under the strain.

   • 2007, Francis Pryor, Britain in the Middle Ages: An Archaeological History (page 232)

     The whole basis of feudalism, especially in the more intensively farmed champion arable landscapes of the Midlands, was starting to creak.

Derived terms

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

 

Translations

to make a prolonged sharp grating or squeaking sound

Arabic: زَيَّقَ‎ (zayyaqa), صَرَّ‎ (ṣarra) Armenian: ճռալ (hy) (čṙal), ճռճռալ (hy) (čṙčṙal) Bulgarian: скърцам (bg) (skǎrcam), скрибуцам (bg) (skribucam) Chinese: Mandarin: 發吱吱聲／发吱吱声 (fā zhīzhī shēng), 發嘎吱聲／发嘎吱声 (fā gāzī shēng), 發軋軋聲／发轧轧声 (fā yàyà shēng) Czech: vrzat impf, skřípat impf Dutch: krassen (nl) Esperanto: grinci, knari Finnish: narista (fi), natista, kitistä (fi) French: craquer (fr) Galician: renxer (gl) German: knarren (de), quietschen (de) Alemannic German: giire Hawaiian: ʻeʻeʻina Hindi: चरमराना (hi) (caramrānā) Hungarian: csikorog (hu), nyikorog (hu), recseg (hu), recseg-ropog (hu) Icelandic: ískra Italian: scricchiolare (it) Japanese: 軋む (きしむ, kishimu) Latin: crepō Maori: whēke, kekē, ngakeke, pātētē, kokē, kongangi, pakē Old English: þunian Polish: trzeszczeć (pl) Portuguese: ranger (pt) Romanian: scârțâi (ro) Russian: скрипе́ть (ru) impf (skripétʹ), скри́пнуть (ru) pf (skrípnutʹ) Spanish: crujir (es), chirriar (es), rechinar (es) Swedish: knarra (sv), knaka (sv) Ukrainian: скрипіти impf (skrypity), рипіти impf (rypity)

to produce a creaking sound with

Finnish: narisuttaa (fi), natisuttaa, kitisyttää Russian: скрипе́ть (ru) impf (skripétʹ), скри́пнуть (ru) pf (skrípnutʹ) Spanish: crujir (es), chirriar (es), rechinar (es)

References

1. Oxford English Dictionary, 1884–1928, and First Supplement, 1933.

Anagrams

• Acker, Crake, Kacer, acker, crake