Stone Temple Pilots: Creep (Half the Man I Used to Be) Meaning

Song Released: 1994

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Creep (Half the Man I Used to Be) Lyrics

Forward yesterday
Makes me wanna stay
What they said was real
Makes me wanna steal
Livin' under house
Guess I'm livin', I'm a mouse
All's I gots is time
Got no meaning, just a rhyme

Take time with a wounded hand
'Cause it likes to...

1. 1TOP RATED

   #1 top rated interpretation:
   anonymous

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   Jan 16th 2014 report

   i believe this song could be about a man who has been crushed by life so many times hes afraid to try to live anymore. he will run from anyone who comes on too strong or fast and often times possibly hurts people almost intentionally to keep them from hurting him. although he does want to be loved he is very afraid to give himself fully anymore because so many pieces of himself have been ripped away by others. almost a warning to handle with care.

2. 2TOP RATED

   #2 top rated interpretation:
   volcano

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   Jan 16th 2009 report

   It appears this song could be universal to a number of painful events that occur because of a person's self-doubt to ever be able to break the habits that cause them to lose things that seem to complete them. I believe strongly that this could apply to a divorce or breakup, because some men feel too strained to be good to the woman they are with, so they give up. Usually when a breakup happens, people point their finger at the male counterpart and call them "creeps" without realizing how difficult it is for them to heal from losing things they love in their lives. Often men have a difficult time forgiving themselves for what they've lost and end up in a deeper with more wounds because they feel as though there is no point in trying to get what they've lost back.

3. 3TOP RATED

   #3 top rated interpretation:
   stpchickfoshoooo

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   Oct 16th 2009 report

   First of all, the song is called "creep", and its about the loss of motivation. Weiland is refering to his heroin addiction, and how its consuming his life entirely. He's not the same person he was before (im half the man i used to be) another symbolic concept in the song is the refernce to jesus.(take time witha wounded hans, cause it likes to heal) Jesus was a healer, and he died on the cross for our sins, hence the "wounded hand", and once again weiland is refering to his substance abuse and how he wants to be healed (take time with a wounded hand, cause it likes to steal) the "stealing" is significant to a sin, which wants to be forgiven and healed, such as scott wants to be healed from his addiction
4. anonymous

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   Dec 12th 2020 report

   Its about a man suffering from depression and explaining its effects on him...hence half the man i use to be..
5. Roroo

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   Dec 31st 2019 report

   I agree that this is the lyrics of a hungry soul , a warn down man . If u have experience in addiction esp heroin u experience days eventually every day numb and going through emotions and self criticism. Wounded hands, wounded every thing.
   R.I.P.
6. anonymous

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   Dec 15th 2019 report

   I think its talking about a couple things. Firstly the Aquarian Foundation which was and possibly still is sometimes an anti semitic cult lead by Edward Arthur Wilson. Who renamed himself Brother 12. Which is zwolf in German. But in numerology he is actually a 6 if that's his real name. So he's half of what he says he is. Then the living under house part reminds me somewhat of when Dorthys house lands on the Wicked Witch of the east. Rumor has it he was dealing opium too after he stole a bunch of people's money and turned them into slaves for his farm and mine. The interesting thing is that the counties in Washington are set up like a zodiac disk if you go from the center. Then there is a few others. So maybe that has something to do with it too.
7. anonymous

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   Nov 16th 2011 report

   The lyrics were by both Scott and Robert. It's about feeling like a creep and outsider now and again and possibly an observation (from Scott's view) of a bad relationship Rob or "Bobby" was in at the time or some such...
8. DBagg

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   Sep 9th 2011 report

   Actually a lot of people here have a misunderstanding of this song. The song was written by bassist Robert DeLeo who was called a "Creep" by an old girlfriend. When asked about the song he said that the word itself is very hurtful with everything it implies and in fact hurt him deeply which is the reason for the very dark lyrics and in fact feel of the song.
9. anonymous

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   Sep 9th 2011 report

   all yall are actually misinformed. if you do the research you will actually find out that the bassist Robert DeLeo wrote this song after being called a "Creep". The song was written because he felt that the word attached so many hurtful feelings and emotions to him. hence the mood of the song itself
10. anonymous

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    May 30th 2011 report

    this song was not ment to mean anything other then to make pretty much an entire song ryme... that all.. nothing about addiction or jesus.

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
11. anonymous

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    May 15th 2011 report

    non-analyzing is right lol. it is NOT about a relationship on the way out, it is like the other person said, about a relationship on the way in.
12. anonymous

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    Aug 20th 2010 report

    non-analyzing; it could be bcuz he was on heroin and stuck under his house like a mouse,so it got dark & late so he ran inside and stuck his hand in a blender to cut off his hand so he wouldn't shoot his girlfriend. and his name is bobby
    
    ummmm it's about relationships on the way out.

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
13. anonymous

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    Aug 10th 2010 report

    you schlepps over-analyzing. its merely about a guy thats been rejected and is basically informing the next significant person he meets that he is vulnerable. it is a classic appeal of a needful soul soliciting the caretaking nature of another.
14. anonymous

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    Mar 2nd 2010 report

    This song is about a kleptomaniac that is living in a country that practices sharia law where they remove a body part as punishment for stealing. The creep cannot help himself from stealing and is becoming half the man he used to be because he is being punished for his crimes.

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
15. anonymous

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    Feb 11th 2010 report

    Last part of verse 1 - "All's I gots is time -- Got no meaning, just a rhyme." There. Enough said.
16. anonymous

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    Oct 24th 2009 report

    This song is not about his drug addiction. Scott didn't begin using heroin until after Core was released.
17. Deadeye

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    Mar 5th 2009 report

    My former high school lit teacher said that she attended high school with Scott Weiland (I believe at Edison High in HB) and that her hallway locker was adjacent to his. As the story goes, one day she overheard Weiland's girlfriend call him a creep while breaking up with. Hence, the title of the song and the lyric, "then she tells me I'm a creep". If true, quite lame.
18. anonymous

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    Aug 15th 2008 report

    I think that this song is about a recovering Kleptomaniac. It would kind of make sense. He has nothing left, he needs to heal the hands that have been dirtied by his compulsive obsession. He is half the man he used to be because he lost something that was a big part of his life that he can no longer do. No longer wants to do.

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