Link Centre Dictionary

teem

UK/tiːm/ US/ˈtim/ uncommon archaic obsolete rare

verb

1.

be teeming, be abuzz

  • “The garden was swarming with bees”
  • “The plaza is teeming with undercover policemen”
  • “her mind pullulated with worries”
Synonyms
2.

move in large numbers

  • “people were pouring out of the theater”
  • “beggars pullulated in the plaza”
Synonyms

Origin

From Middle English temen (“to bear, to support”), from Anglian Old English tēman (“to give birth”) (West Saxon Old English tīeman), from Proto-West Germanic *taumijan (“to bridle”), from Proto-Germanic *taumijaną, from *taumaz ("bridle", continued in Modern English as team).

Phrases

  • teem down
  • teem with

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See also

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.