Creature

• 1. a. Anything created; a created being, animate or inanimate; a product of creative action; a creation.

b. The created universe; creation. Obs.

c. Applied, after 1 Tim. iv 4 (‘every creature of God is good’), to food and other things which minister to the material comfort of man; usually in phr. good creature.

d. humorous. Intoxicating liquor; esp. whisky. The ‘Irish’ pronunciation is represented by the spellings cratur, crater, crathur, etc.

• 2. a. A living ‘creature’ or created being, an animate being; an animal; often as distinct from ‘man’.

b. In U.S., esp. applied in rural use to cattle.

• 3. a. A human being; a person or individual (as in ‘every creature in the room’). Common in the phrase ‘our fellow-creatures’. [So F. créature.]

b. With qualifications expressing (a) admiration, approbation, affection, or tenderness (sometimes playfully); (b) compassion or commiseration (sometimes with a shade of patronage).

c. Expressing reprobation or contempt. (Originally with qualifications as in b, but at length used alone = creature of a kind which one forbears to specify.)

• 4. fig. That which is produced by, or owes its being solely to, another thing; a result, product, or offspring of anything.

• 5. One who owes his fortune and position to a patron; one who is actuated by the will of another, or is ready to do his bidding; an instrument or puppet. [So F. créature, said in this sense to be from It.] creature of circumstance: see CIRCUMSTANCE n. 4a.

• 6. Comb. a. appositive, as creature-delights, -god, -good; b. attributive (‘of, pertaining to, connected with creatures’), as creature competitions, attraction; c. objective genitive, as creature-worship, -love.

d. creature-comforts, material comforts (such as food and clothing). Also sing.