team

American  

[teem] / tim /

noun

1. a number of persons forming one of the sides in a game or contest.

   a football team.

2. a number of persons associated in some joint action.

   a team of advisers.

3. two or more horses, oxen, or other animals harnessed together to draw a vehicle, plow, or the like.

4. one or more draft animals together with the harness and vehicle drawn.

5. a family of young animals, especially ducks or pigs.

6. Obsolete. offspring or progeny; lineage or stock.

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verb (used with object)

1. to join together in a team.

2. Chiefly Northern U.S. Older Use. to convey or transport by means of a team; haul.

verb (used without object)

1. to drive a team.

2. to gather or join in a team, a band, or a cooperative effort (usually followed by up, together, etc.).

   Synonyms:

   merge, ally, unite, combine

adjective

1. of, relating to, or performed by a team.

   a team sport; team effort.

team British  

/ tiːm /

noun

1. a group of people organized to work together

2. a group of players forming one of the sides in a sporting contest

3. two or more animals working together to pull a vehicle or agricultural implement

4. such animals and the vehicle

   the coachman riding his team

5. dialect a flock, herd, or brood

6. obsolete ancestry

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verb

1. to make or cause to make a team

   he teamed George with Robert

2. (tr) to drag or transport in or by a team

3. (intr) to drive a team

Grammar

See collective noun.

Usage

What does team mean? A team is a group of people who work together in a joint action, as in Our Academic Decathlon team was made up of some of the smartest kids in our school.A team is also a group of people on one side of a contest or game, such as a soccer team or a trivia team.A team is also two or more draft animals, such as horses, harnessed together to pull something, like a plow or a cart.To team up is to form a group to work together, as in Miles and Lex teamed up to study for the big science test next month.Example: My team is working hard on these software solutions for streaming platforms.

Other Word Forms

• interteam adjective
• underteamed adjective
• unteamed adjective

Etymology

Origin of team

First recorded before 900; Middle English teme (noun), Old English tēam “child-bearing, brood, offspring, set of draft beasts”; cognate with Dutch toom “bridle, reins,” German Zaum, Old Norse taumr

Example Sentences

Arini is run by a tightknit team of analysts and traders from countries including Afghanistan, Turkey and Ukraine.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 4, 2026

Orange Lutheran coach RJ Farrell saw his team fight back from adversity, and in the Texas-bound Murrietta, he has an MVP candidate capable of igniting the Lancers with his bat, glove and leadership skills.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 3, 2026

The show and its team now fall under the responsibility of OpenAI's public affairs chief Chris Lehane, a veteran Washington lobbyist who made his name handling scandals for the Clinton administration.

From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026

"It might be that your IVF support team are different to the people who would normally support you," she says.

From BBC • Apr. 3, 2026

To slow the team down, you simply stood on the mat.

From "Black Star, Bright Dawn" by Scott O'Dell

Related Words

• club
• company
• lineup
• organization
• party
• side
• squad
• unit