swarm 1 of 3

noun

ˈswȯrm How to pronounce swarm (audio)
Definition of swarmnext
as in throng
a great number of persons or creatures massed together a swarm of tourists descends upon the island every summer

Synonyms & Similar Words

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swarm

2 of 3

verb (1)

1
as in to flock
to move upon or fill (something) in great numbers meeting little resistance, the pirates swarmed the decks of the merchant ship

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2
as in to burst
to be copiously supplied at this time of year that Mexican resort swarms with college students on spring break

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

swarm

3 of 3

verb (2)

as in to climb
to move (as up or over something) often with the help of the hands in holding or pulling one of the physical challenges had competitors swarming over a pile of logs

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of swarm
Noun
They can be launched in swarms, Allison Minor, a senior fellow in the Middle East Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told CBS News. — Frank Andrews, CBS News, 21 Oct. 2026 The Ukrainians are regularly launching swarms of drones now that number in the hundreds, compared with dozens earlier in the war, Mitrova said. — Spencer Kimball,deena Zaidi, CNBC, 21 Oct. 2026
Verb
The incident shocked families and children at the field as dozens of first responders swarmed the scene. — Emma Tucker, CNN Money, 17 Oct. 2026 Russian drones swarmed Ukraine on Wednesday, and more than 850 had filled the skies over Ukraine since early Thursday, Zelenskyy said. — Abigail Williams, NBC news, 15 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for swarm
Recent Examples of Synonyms for swarm
  1. throng
  2. flock
  3. burst
  4. climb
  5. crowd
  6. buzz
  7. scramble
  8. horde
Noun
  • As for the happy throng of guests, the dress code was wide open to interpretation, from paillettes to pink marabou.
    — Laura Regensdorf, Vogue, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Outside, a throng of revelers were waiting to navigate the same journey as Williams, McRae, and their respective entourages.
    — Dan Adler, Vanity Fair, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of throng
Verb
  • Maintaining a sense of normalcy and a human connection with her constituents has become increasingly difficult as opponents have dialed up their ire—most recently, flocking to Collins’s Maine office to loudly protest July’s ICE shooting.
    — Chris Smith, Vanity Fair, 26 Oct. 2026
  • Instead, as would later happen in Kansas and Nebraska, slaveowners and Southern sympathizers on the one hand and abolitionists and Free-Soilers on the other all flocked to California to try to tip the political scales in their favor.
    — Kathryn Schulz, New Yorker, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of flock
Verb
  • When that bubble burst in the Panic of 1893, a third of railroads went bust, more than 500 banks failed, and the economy plunged into a four-year depression.
    — Ming Lu, Fortune, 22 Oct. 2026
  • When a bank of televisions showed horses bursting through the starting gate, feet stomped on the club’s carpet.
    — Abe Streep, ProPublica, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of burst
Verb
  • Yields have been generally climbing there because of worries about the government's big debt load and strained budget.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Yields have been generally climbing there because of worries about the government’s big debt load and strained budget.
    — Stan Choe, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of climb
Noun
  • Nugent has been in police custody since shortly after Haines was injured and a crowd of bystanders subdued him.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Suspect to face court on Wednesday Nugent has been in police custody since shortly after Haines was injured and a crowd of bystanders subdued him.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of crowd
Verb
  • On this cloudy Saturday morning in September, Cape Town's College of Magic is buzzing with energy as dozens of students are competing in the annual junior magic contest.
    — Julie Bourdin, NPR, 25 Oct. 2026
  • Fielder and Oppenheim’s word-of-mouth sensation has taken pop culture by storm, earning millions at the box office, winning near-universal critical praise and generating a ton of press coverage, as well as Oscar buzz.
    — David Mack, CNN Money, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of buzz
Verb
  • In contrast to the gorgeous monochrome visuals, this is a land that stinks of complicity and delusion — of opportunists desperate to scramble onto the right side of history.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Experts expect airfares for this holiday travel season will be the highest in years as airlines scramble to cover the rising cost of jet fuel, which is one of their biggest expenses.
    — Joel Rose, NPR, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of scramble
Noun
  • In July, a horde of OpenAI agents broke out of their sandboxes and worked together to launch a cyberattack on the AI company Hugging Face.
    — Harry Booth, Time, 20 Oct. 2026
  • The report describes aggressive tactics in which hordes of solicitors sit on the phones all day, calling people to get them to refinance.
    — Lew Sichelman, Miami Herald, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of horde

Browse Nearby Words

swards
swarm
swarmed
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Cite this Entry

“Swarm.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/swarm. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

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