swarm
Use Swarm in a sentence
noun
1.
a body of honeybees that emigrate from a hive and fly off together, accompanied by a queen, to start a new colony.
2.
a body of bees settled together, as in a hive.
3.
a great number of things or persons, especially in motion.
4.
Biology. a group or aggregation of free-floating or free-swimming cells or organisms.
5.
Geology. a cluster of earthquakes or other geologic phenomena or features.
verb (used without object)
6.
to fly off together in a swarm, as bees.
7.
to move about, along, forth, etc., in great numbers, as things or persons.
8.
to congregate, hover, or occur in groups or multitudes; be exceedingly numerous, as in a place or area.
9.
(of a place) to be thronged or overrun; abound or teem: The beach swarms with children on summer weekends.
10.
Biology. to move or swim about in a swarm.
00:10
Swarm
is always a great word to know.
So is selection. Does it mean:
| a process that results in differential reproduction among a population so that the inheritable traits of only certain individuals are passed on |
| an organism that is not adapted to prevailing conditions or producing offspring that maintain its contribution of genes to the next generation |
verb (used with object)
11.
to swarm about, over, or in; throng; overrun.
12.
to produce a swarm of.
Origin:
before 900; (noun) Middle English; Old English swearm; cognate with German Schwarm swarm, Old Norse svarmr tumult; (v.) Middle English swarmen, derivative of the noun
before 900; (noun) Middle English; Old English swearm; cognate with German Schwarm swarm, Old Norse svarmr tumult; (v.) Middle English swarmen, derivative of the noun
Related forms
swarm·er, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
verb (used with object), verb (used without object)
to climb by clasping with the legs and hands or arms and drawing oneself up; shin.
Origin:
1540–50; origin uncertain
1540–50; origin uncertain
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source
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Link To swarm
Collins
World English Dictionary
swarm1 (swɔːm) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n | |
| 1. | a group of social insects, esp bees led by a queen, that has left the parent hive in order to start a new colony |
| 2. | a large mass of small animals, esp insects |
| 3. | a throng or mass, esp when moving or in turmoil |
| —vb (when intr, | |
| 4. | (intr) (of small animals, esp bees) to move in or form a swarm |
| 5. | (intr) to congregate, move about or proceed in large numbers |
| 6. | to overrun or be overrun (with): the house swarmed with rats |
| 7. | (tr) to cause to swarm |
| [Old English swearm; related to Old Norse svarmr uproar, Old High German swaram swarm] | |
| swarm2 (swɔːm) | |
| —vb (when intr, | |
| to climb (a ladder, etc) by gripping with the hands and feet: the boys swarmed up the rigging | |
| [C16: of unknown origin] | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
swarm
"cloud of bees or other insects," O.E. swearm, from P.Gmc. *swarmaz (cf. O.S., M.L.G. swarm, Swed. svärm, M.Du. swerm, O.H.G. swarm, Ger. Schwarm "swarm;" O.N. svarmr "tumult"), usually derived from PIE imitative base *swer- (see susurration) on notion of humming
sound. But OED suggests possible connection with base of swerve and ground sense of "agitated, confused, or deflected motion." The verb meaning "to leave a hive to start another" is first recorded c.1380, from the noun.
swarm
"to climb by clasping with the arms and legs alternately," 1550, perhaps originally a sailors' word, of uncertain origin. Also recorded as swarve (16c.) and in Northern dialects swarble, swarmle.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Example sentences
They are a swarm of quick-moving and plotting groups who win by disruption.
For a crystal to turn to liquid, it seems that a type of swarm intelligence causes atoms to move all at once and in sync.
We're hoping they didn't swarm already, leaving behind this new queen.
Counterinsurgency theory urges commanders to swarm troops into dense population centers in order to win crucial local support.
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