teem

/tiːm/

//tiːm// verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"teem" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“teem” is an uncommon English word, ranked #87,898 in English word frequency and used as a verb.

#87,898
frequency rank, English
4
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To be stocked to overflowing.

Key facts for teem
PropertyValue
Headwordteem
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/tiːm/
Letters4
Frequency rank#87,898
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “teem” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). teem lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for teem is 4 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /tiːm/. Corpus data places it at rank #87,898 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 4 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

teem has no tracked misspelling variants, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: 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 Moder… The correct English form is teem, spelled T-E-E-M.

Definition

  1. 1
    To be stocked to overflowing.
  2. 2
    To be prolific; to abound; to be rife.
  3. 3
    To fall prolifically.
  4. 4
    To bring forth young, as an animal; to produce fruit, as a plant; to bear; to be pregnant; to conceive; to multiply.

Etymology

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).

Synonyms

swarm

This word in other languages

bullir(Español)grouiller(Français)überquellen(Deutsch)fervilhar(Português)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "teem"?
"teem" is spelled T-E-E-M. The IPA pronunciation is /tiːm/.
What does "teem" mean?
As a verb, "teem" means: To be stocked to overflowing.
How do you pronounce "teem"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "teem" is /tiːm/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "teem"?
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", continue... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “teem”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is T-E-E-M - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /tiːm/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list