swarm
/swɔɹm/noun, verb
swarm is spelled S-W-A-R-M: 5 letters and one syllable. It appears 2.8 times per million words in written English, the 16,228th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, swarm means “A large number of insects or other bugs (e.g. centipedes), especially when in motion or (for bees) migrating to a new colony” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of swarm is swarms.
How many letters and syllables are in swarm?
| Letters | 5: S-W-A-R-M |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 2.8 times per million words; the 16,228th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is swarm?
Swarm appears 2.8 times per million words in written English, the 16,228th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce swarm?
- US /swɔɹm/
- UK /swɔːm/
Swarm has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-swarm.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with swarm?
10 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as swarm from its last stressed vowel (/ɔɹm/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of swarm
- swarms plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- swarming participle, present
- swarmed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does swarm mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A large number of insects or other bugs (e.g. centipedes), especially when in motion or (for bees) migrating to a new colony.
- 2
A mass of people, animals or things in motion or turmoil.
a swarm of meteorites
- 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
To move as a swarm.
- 2
To teem, or be overrun with insects, people, etc.
- 3
To fill a place as a swarm.
- 4
To overwhelm as by an opposing army.
- 5
To climb by gripping with arms and legs alternately.
- 6
To breed multitudes.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Swarm in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | essaim, grouillement , nuée , essaimer |
| German | Schwarm |
| Portuguese | enxame, nuvem, correição , multidão, turba , enxamear |
| Spanish | enjambre, nube , multitud, muchedumbre, masa, aglomeración |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does swarm come from?
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”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).