swarm
/swɔɹm/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.44 in modern English
10
Scrabble Score
5
Letters
1
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A large number of insects or other bugs (e.g. centipedes), especially when in motion or (for bees) migrating to a new colony.
noun
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.
Example Sentences
- "[…] reſtleſs thoughts, that like a deadly ſwarm / Of Hornets arm'd […] ruſh upon me thronging,"
- "a swarm of meteorites"
- "those prodigious swarms that had settled themselves in every part of it [Italy]"
- "Earthquakes were another concern, particularly after swarms were felt in Oklahoma."
- "There is an hour or two, after the passengers have embarked, which is disquieting and fussy. Mail bags, so I understand, are being put on board. Stewards, carrying cabin trunks, swarm in the corridors."
- "When I was there, at about 0200 this morning [15 May], hundreds of students had swarmed up the steps of the Great Hall and sat there making political speeches. Troops were moved in, 100 or so filed out of the hall and drove the students back, but they were extremely gentle, saying xiexie, xiexie, thank you, thank you, and the relations seemed to be extremely good; I don't think that there is anything the authorities can do now to get them off even though they have said the square will be closed to pedestrians."
Etymology
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.
Origin
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /swɔɹm/
- British English: /swɔːm/