swarm

swarm
I. noun Etymology: Middle English, from Old English swearm; akin to Old High German swaram swarm and probably to Latin susurrus hum Date: before 12th century 1. a. a great number of honeybees emigrating together from a hive in company with a queen to start a new colony elsewhere b. a colony of honeybees settled in a hive 2. a. a large number of animate or inanimate things massed together and usually in motion ; throng <
swarms of sightseers
>
<
a swarm of locusts
>
<
a swarm of meteors
>
b. a number of similar geological features or phenomena close together in space or time <
a swarm of dikes
>
<
an earthquake swarm
>
II. verb Date: 14th century intransitive verb 1. to form and depart from a hive in a swarm 2. a. to move or assemble in a crowd ; throng b. to hover about in the manner of a bee in a swarm 3. to contain a swarm ; teem <
swarming with bugs
>
transitive verb 1. to fill with a swarm 2. to beset or surround in a swarm <
players swarming the quarterback
>
swarmer noun III. verb Etymology: origin unknown Date: 14th century intransitive verb to climb with the hands and feet; specifically shin <
swarm up a pole
>
transitive verb to climb up ; mount

New Collegiate Dictionary. 2001.

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  • Swarm — Swarm, n. [OE. swarm, AS. swearm; akin to D. zwerm, G. schwarm, OHG. swaram, Icel. svarmr a tumult, Sw. sv[ a]rm a swarm, Dan. sv[ae]rm, and G. schwirren to whiz, to buzz, Skr. svar to sound, and perhaps to E. swear. [root]177. Cf. {Swerve},… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • SWARM — (engl. Schwarm) ist der Name einer Satellitenmission der ESA. Der Start ist für vor Mitte 2012[1] geplant. Sie ist Teil des Programms Earth Explorer Mission. Dabei werden drei identische Satelliten mit einer Masse von 500 kg[2] zusammenarbeiten.… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • SWARM — Caractéristiques Organisation ESA Domaine Etude du champ magnétique terrestre Masse 3 satellites de quelques centaines de kg Lancement 2012 Durée de vie 4 ans Orbite …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Swarm — (engl. Schwarm) ist der Name einer für das Jahr 2011 geplanten Satellitenmission der ESA. Sie ist Teil des Programms Earth Explorer Mission. Es werden dabei drei identische Satelliten mit einer Masse von 200–400 kg zusammen arbeiten. Sie… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • swarm — ► NOUN 1) a large or dense group of flying insects. 2) a large number of honeybees that leave a hive with a queen in order to establish a new colony. 3) a large group of people or things. ► VERB 1) move in or form a swarm. 2) (swarm with) be… …   English terms dictionary

  • swarm — swarm1 [swôrm] n. [ME < OE swearm, akin to Ger schwarm, prob. < IE base * swer , to buzz > L susurrare, to hiss, whisper, sorex, Gr hyrax, shrew] 1. a large number of bees, led by a queen, leaving one hive for another to start a new… …   English World dictionary

  • swarm|er — «SWR muhr», noun. 1. one of a number that swarm; one of a swarm, as of insects. 2. Biology. swarm spore …   Useful english dictionary

  • Swarm — Swarm, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Swarmed}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Swarming}.] 1. To collect, and depart from a hive by flight in a body; said of bees; as, bees swarm in warm, clear days in summer. [1913 Webster] 2. To appear or collect in a crowd; to throng …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Swarm — Swarm, v. i. [Cf. {Swerve}.] To climb a tree, pole, or the like, by embracing it with the arms and legs alternately. See {Shin}. [Colloq.] [1913 Webster] At the top was placed a piece of money, as a prize for those who could swarm up and seize it …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • swarm — ‘group of insects’ [OE] and swarm ‘climb’ [16] are distinct words. The former comes from a prehistoric Germanic *swarmaz, which also produced German schwarm, and is closely related to Dutch swerm, Swedish svärm, and Danish sværm. It may go back… …   The Hutchinson dictionary of word origins

  • swarm — ‘group of insects’ [OE] and swarm ‘climb’ [16] are distinct words. The former comes from a prehistoric Germanic *swarmaz, which also produced German schwarm, and is closely related to Dutch swerm, Swedish svärm, and Danish sværm. It may go back… …   Word origins

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