swarm

Meaning

Noun

1. A large number of insects, especially when in motion or (for bees) migrating to a new colony.
2. A mass of people, animals or things in motion or turmoil.
3. A group of nodes sharing the same torrent in a BitTorrent network.
4. A number of small earthquakes (or other seismic events) occurring, with no clear cause, in a specific area within a relatively short space of time.

Verb

1. (intransitive) To move as a swarm.
2. (intransitive) To teem, or be overrun with insects, people, etc.
3. (transitive) To fill a place as a swarm.
4. (transitive) To overwhelm as by an opposing army.
5. To climb by gripping with arms and legs alternately.
6. To breed multitudes.

Synonyms

flock

crowd

throng

herd

gather

teem

horde

mass

mob

group

multitude

school

🏫

stream

shoal

flight

✈️

bevy

drove

heap

pack

pullulate

congregate

crowd around

mill about

cluster

troop

cloud

☁️

assemble

rabble

pile

company

come together

collection

body

gaggle

cluster around

circle

⭕

pod

hive

crowd round

colony

band

accumulation

huddle

assemblage

surge

pour

pride

covey

team

army

Translations

essaim

Schwarm

enjambre

sciame

menigte

multidão

zwerm

muchedumbre

schwärmen

masse

zwermen

essaimer

enxame

krielen

Pronounced as (IPA)

/swɔɹm/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: swarm

Inherited from Old English: swearm

Cognate with Saterland Frisian: Swoorm

Cognate with Dutch: zwerm

Cognate with German: Schwarm

Cognate with Danish: sværm

Cognate with Swedish: svärm

Cognate with Icelandic: svarmur

Cognate with Latin: susurrus

Cognate with Lithuanian: surma

Cognate with Russian: свире́ль

Inherited from Middle English: swarmen

Inherited from Old English: swierman

Cognate with Scots: swairm

Cognate with Dutch: zwermen

Cognate with German: schwärmen

Cognate with Danish: sværme

Cognate with Swedish: svärma

In summary

From Middle English swarm, from Old English swearm (“swarm, multitude”), from Proto-West Germanic *swarm, from Proto-Germanic *swarmaz (“swarm, dizziness”), from Proto-Indo-European *swer- (“to buzz, hum”).
Cognate with Saterland Frisian Swoorm (“swarm”), Dutch zwerm, German Schwarm, Danish sværm, Swedish svärm, Icelandic svarmur (“tumult, swarm”), Latin susurrus (“whispering, humming”), Lithuanian surma (“a pipe”), Russian свире́ль (svirélʹ, “a pipe, reed”).
The verb is from Middle English swarmen, swermen, from Old English swirman (“to swarm”), from Proto-West Germanic *swarmijan, from Proto-Germanic *swarmijaną (“to swarm”), from the noun. Cognate with Scots swairm, swerm (“to swarm”), Dutch zwermen, German schwärmen, Danish sværme, Swedish svärma.