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Origin and history of crawl

crawl(v.)

c. 1200, creulen, "to move slowly by drawing the body across the ground," from a Scandinavian source, perhaps Old Norse krafla "to claw (one's way)," or Danish kravle, from the same root as crab (n.1). If there was an Old English *craflian, it has not been recorded.

Meaning "advance slowly" is from mid-15c. Sense of "have a sensation as of something crawling on the flesh" is from c. 1300. Related: Crawled; crawler; crawling.

crawl(n.)

1818, "act of crawling," from crawl (v.). In the swimming sense from 1903; the stroke was developed by Frederick Cavill, well-known English swimmer who emigrated to Australia and modified the standard stroke of the day after observing South Seas islanders. So called because the swimmer's motion in the water resembles crawling. Meaning "slow progress from one drinking place to another" is by 1883.

also from 1818

Entries linking to crawl

crab(n.1)

popular name for a stalk-eyed, short-tailed, ten-legged crustacean, Middle English crabbe, from Old English crabba, from Proto-Germanic *krabbo- (source also of Dutch krab, Old High German krebiz, German Krabbe, Old Norse krabbi "crab"), related to Low German krabben, Dutch krabelen "to scratch, claw," said to be from PIE root *gerbh- "to scratch, carve" (see carve). French crabe (13c.) is from Germanic, probably Old Norse. 

The zodiac constellation name is attested in English from c. 1000; the Crab Nebula (1840), however, is in Taurus, the result of the supernova of 1054, and is so called for its shape. Crab stick "white fish meat dyed to resemble crab and pressed into a stick shape" is by mid-1950s. To catch a crab "fall or be thrown due to a mistake in rowing" is from 1785. The crab-louse (1540s), commonly found in pubic hair, is so called for its shape and appearance. Short form crab for this is from 1840; related: Crabs.

night-crawler(n.)

"large earthworm caught at night to be used as bait by anglers," by 1896, American English, from night (n.) + agent noun from crawl (v.).

scrawl(v.)

1610s, "write or draw awkwardly and untidily," a word of uncertain origin, perhaps from a specific use of Middle English scrawlen "spread out the limbs, sprawl" (early 15c.), which might be an alteration of sprawlen (see sprawl (v.)) or crawl (v.). Some sources suggest a contraction of scrabble. Related: Scrawled; scrawling.

The noun in the sense of "piece of unskilled or inelegant writing" is by 1690s, from the verb; the meaning "bad style of handwriting" is by 1710.

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    fawn
    "young deer," mid-14c., from Anglo-French (late 13c.), Old French (12c.) faon, feon "young animal," especially "young deer," from Vulgar Latin *fetonem (nominative *feto), from Latin fetus "a bringing forth; an offspring" (from suffixed form of PIE root *dhe(i)- "to suck"). It wa
    cringe
    1570s, "to bend or crouch, especially with servility or fear," variant of crenge, crenche "to bend" (c. 1200), from causative of Old English cringan "yield, give way, fall (in battle); become bent," from Proto-Germanic *krank- "bend, curl up" (source also of Old Norse kringr, Dut
    cower
    early 14c., "to crouch, squat, or kneel;" late 14c., "to stoop or sink down, especially in fear or shame," probably from Middle Low German *kuren "lie in wait" (Modern German kauern), or similar Scandinavian words meaning "to squat" and "to doze" (such as Old Norse kura, Danish,
    sneak
    go in a stealthy, slinking way" (intransitive); perhaps from some dialectal survival of Middle English sniken "to creep, crawl..." (c. 1200), which is from Old English snican "to sneak along, creep, crawl," from Proto-Germanic *sneikanan, which is related...
    slick
    sleek, smooth" (source also of Old Norse slikr "smooth," Old High German slihhan "to glide," German schleichen "to creep, crawl...
    scree
    This is from the verb skriða "to creep, crawl;" of a ship, "to sail, glide," also "to slide" (on snow-shoes), from Proto-Germanic...
    ramp
    stand on the hind legs" (of animals), from Old French ramper "to climb, scale, mount" (12c., in Modern French "to creep, crawl...
    motion
    late 14c., mocioun, "process of moving; change of place, continuous variation of position;" also "suggestion, proposal or proposition formally made," from Old French mocion "movement, motion; change, alteration" (13c., Modern French motion) and directly from Latin motionem (nomin
    travel
    late 14c., "to journey," from travailen (1300) "to make a journey," originally "to toil, labor" (see travail). The semantic development may have been via the notion of "go on a difficult journey," but it also may reflect the difficulty of any journey in the Middle Ages. Replaced
    swim
    Middle English swimmen, from Old English swimman, of a person, fish, bird, "to move in the water, float on the water, move in water by natural means of locomotion" (class III strong verb; past tense swamm, past participle swummen), from Proto-Germanic *swimjan (source also of Old

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