team
/ˈtiːm/noun, verb, interjection
team is spelled T-E-A-M: 4 letters and one syllable. It appears 468 times per million words in written English, the 203rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). People search “team vs teem” about 30 times a month (Google, United States). As a noun, team means “A set of draught animals, such as two horses in front of a carriage” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of team is teams.
How many letters and syllables are in team?
| Letters | 4: T-E-A-M |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 |
| In writing | 468 times per million words; the 203rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Pairs people search | |
| Sounds like | |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is team?
Team appears 468 times per million words in written English, the 203rd 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 team?
- /ˈtiːm/
- [ˈtʰɪi̯m]
Team has one syllable.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-team.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with team
Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).
Sounds like: teem (Wiktionary's homophone list; some hold only in some accents).
Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
What rhymes with team?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as team.
Spelled with the same letters in another order: meat, mate, meta, tame.
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 team
- teams plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- teaming participle, present
- teamed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does team mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A set of draught animals, such as two horses in front of a carriage.
- 2
Any group of people involved in the same activity, especially sports or work.
We need more volunteers for the netball team.
- 3
obsoleteA group of animals moving together, especially young ducks.
- 4
UKobsoleteA royalty or privilege granted by royal charter to a lord of a manor, of having, keeping, and judging in his court, his bondmen, neifes, and villains, and their offspring, or suit, that is, goods and chattels, and appurtenances thereto.
- 5
A group of people who favor one side of a binary debate that is divided and lacks a well-established clear consensus.
verb
- 1
To form a group, as for sports or work.
They teamed to complete the project.
- 2
To go together well; to harmonize.
- 3
To convey or haul with a team.
to team lumber
- 4
To form together into a team.
to team oxen
- 5
To give work to a gang under a subcontractor.
interjection
- 1
colloquialUsed to propose that another player team up with the speaker.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Team in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | Gespann , Mannschaft, Team |
| Portuguese | parelha , equipa, equipe, time |
| Spanish | tiro, yunta , equipo, cuadrilla, consorcio |
| French | équipe |
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 team come from?
From Middle English tem, teem, teme, from Old English tēam (“child-bearing, offspring, brood, set of draught animals”), from Proto-West Germanic *taum, from Proto-Germanic *taumaz (“that which draws or pulls”), from Proto-Germanic *taugijaną, *tugōną, *teuhōną, *teuhaną (“to lead, bring, pull, draw”), from Proto-Indo-European *dewk- (“to pull, lead”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).