teem
To be completely full of moving things.
teem in a sentence
- The rock pool teemed with tiny darting fish and scuttling crabs.
- In summer the flower beds teem with buzzing bees and busy, fluttering butterflies.
Try an 11+ style question
Verbal reasoning papers often ask about a word like this.
Which word is closest in meaning to teem?
- Alack
- Bempty
- Cdrain
- Dswarm
Show the answer
D: swarm. The other three mean the opposite of teem.
Which word is most nearly opposite in meaning to teem?
- Aswarm
- Bbustle
- Cbrim
- Dempty
Show the answer
D: empty. The other three mean nearly the same as teem.
Words that mean something similar
swarm, brim, bustle
Words that mean the opposite
empty, drain, lack
More words about size & amount
- throng: A large crowd of people packed together.
- tinge: A small amount of a colour or feeling.
- tremendous: Extremely large or extremely good.
- trifle: Something of little value or importance.
- trivial: So small and unimportant that it hardly matters.
- unique: Being the only one of its kind; unlike anything else.
- unsurpassed: Better than all others; never beaten.
- unwieldy: Awkward to carry or use because it is big and clumsy.
More words to explore
Sitting the 11+ in Kent, Medway or Buckinghamshire?
Plain-English guides to each test, from the councils’ own pages: Kent Test · Medway Test · Bucks Secondary Transfer Test