DCHP-1 Online

creek

• 1 n. any freshwater stream smaller than a river.

  • In the Atlantic Provinces, and occasionally on the West Coast, the older sense of creek, "tidal estuary, saltwater inlet," has been retained, a small freshwater stream usually being called a brook.

  • 1691  (1964)  Today . . . we went through a little creek were [sic] we were forc'd to track our Cannoes. . . .
  • 1863  When I'm writing to Linda, I shall date from Cedar Creek which will give her an exalted idea of our location: at the same time she will be convinced it is situated on the seashore, if I forget to say that in Canada every stream is a "creek."
  • 1964  We are fortunate enough to have a creek running through our land which has a good bottom and can serve as a swimming pool.

• 2 n. Placer Mining the creeks, streams and adjacent diggings yielding gold.

  • 1901  [Being above all things a creek paper, we will endeavor to acquaint ourselves and our readers . . . with the doings of those . . . "shoveling gravel" in all parts of the Klondike. . . .]
  • 1907  During the first two or three years their work was confined mainly to Dawson and its immediate environment, "the creeks."
  • 1958  He made his usual small stake at Dawson City. We wanted to know all about life on the creeks.