Did you know?
Teem and team are not just homophones, they are also etymological kin. Teem comes from Old English tīman or tǣman, which originally meant "to bring forth offspring" or "to give birth to.” That word is related to the ancestor of team, the Old English noun tēam, meaning "offspring, lineage, or group of draft animals." Team can still be used to refer to a brood of young animals, especially pigs or ducks, but both teem and team have otherwise largely left their offspring-related senses behind.
Did you know?
What is the difference between the verbs teem and team?
If you want to describe an overflowing abundance of something, the word you are looking for is teem. We often see reference to "the teeming masses," "streets teeming with activity," or "forests teeming with life." You want the word team if you are trying to describe pairing two or more things in a coordinated ensemble ("she teamed the oxen together"), or forming some kind of partnership or association ("we are teaming with another organization this year").
Synonyms
Examples of teem in a Sentence
Ed Cara / Gizmodo, Quartz, 17 Apr. 2024
As a result, shelters are teeming not only with the kinds of dogs that people might imagine, like large-breed mutts and pit bulls; but also huskies, French bulldogs and designer dogs.
—Marc Ramirez, USA TODAY, 20 Feb. 2024
See all Example Sentences for teem 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'teem.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Articles Related to teem
Dictionary Entries Near teem
Cite this Entry
“Teem.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/teem. Accessed 6 May. 2024.
Copy Citation
Share