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Mob vs Swarm - What's the difference?

mob | swarm |

In transitive terms the difference between mob and swarm

is that mob is to wrap up in, or cover with, a cowl while swarm is to overwhelm as by an opposing army.

As an abbreviation mob

is mobile phone.

As an initialism MOB

is Man Over Board, used e.g. on the emergency button of a satellite navigator. By pushing the button the operator stores the coordinates of a man overboard incident for easy access.

mob

English

Etymology 1

(etyl), short for mobile, from (etyl) . The video-gaming sense originates from English mobile, used by (Richard Bartle) for objects capable of movement in an early MUD.

Noun

(en noun)
  • An unruly group of people.
  • *(James Madison), Jr. (1751-1836)
  • *:Had every Athenian citizen been a Socrates, every Athenian assembly would still have been a mob .
  • A commonly used collective noun for animals such as horses or cattle.
  • The Mafia, or a similar group that engages in organized crime (preceded by the ).
  • *
  • *:The Bat—they called him the Bat.. He'd never been in stir, the bulls had never mugged him, he didn't run with a mob , he played a lone hand, and fenced his stuff so that even the fence couldn't swear he knew his face.
  • *1986 , (Paul Chadwick), Concrete: Under the Desert Stars , Dark Horse Books
  • *:What if it is a mob killing? They can’t hurt me, but …
  • (lb) A non-player character that exists to be fought or killed to further the progression of the story or game.
  • *2002 , "Wolfie", Re: Whoa - massive changes due in next patch'' (on newsgroup ''alt.games.everquest )
  • *:You can't win with small, balanced groups. You have to zerg the mob with a high number of players.
  • (lb) The lower classes of a community; the rabble.
  • *(Joseph Addison) (1672–1719)
  • *:A cluster of mob were making themselves merry with their betters.
  • (lb) A cohesive group of people.
  • *2011 March 10, Allan Clarke, W.A. through Noongar eyes
  • *:There’s nothing like local knowledge and after thousands of years living here the Noongar mob understand this land better than anyone, so it makes sense for them to tap into the lucrative tourism industry.
    • Derived terms
    * flash mob * lynch mob * meal mob * mob rule * mob-handed * mobber * mobbish * mobbist * mobbism * moblike * mobmobile * mobocracy * mobster * vote mob
    Synonyms
    * (mafia) mafia, Mafia

    Verb

    (mobb)
  • To crowd around (someone), often with hostility.
    • The fans mobbed a well-dressed couple who resembled their idols.
  • To crowd into or around a place.
    • The shoppers mobbed the store on the first day of the sale.
  • (video games) The act of a player aggroing enemies so they follow them and gather, forming a mob of foes. (rfex)

    • Etymology 2

    Alteration of (mab).

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • (obsolete) A promiscuous woman; a harlot or wench; a prostitute.
  • A mob cap.
    • (Goldsmith)
    Derived terms
    * mob cap

    Verb

    (mobb)
  • To wrap up in, or cover with, a cowl.

    • Etymology 3

    Abbreviation of mobile phone.

    Abbreviation

    (Abbreviation) (en-abbr)
  • mobile phone
    • Usage notes
    * This is most often used in signwriting to match with with the other three-letter abbreviations and (fax).

    Anagrams

    * *

    External links

    * ----

    swarm

    English

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • A large number of insects, especially when in motion or (for bees) migrating to a new colony.
  • * Milton
    • a deadly swarm of hornets
  • A mass of people, animals or things in motion or turmoil.
    • a swarm of meteorites
  • * Addison
    • those prodigious swarms that had settled themselves in every part of it [Italy]
  • (label) A group of nodes sharing the same torrent in a BitTorrent network.

    • Verb

    (en verb)
  • (lb) To move as a swarm .
  • *
  • *:There is an hour or two, after the passengers have embarked, which is disquieting and fussy. Mail bags, so I understand, are being put on board. Stewards, carrying cabin trunks, swarm in the corridors.
  • (lb) To teem, or be overrun with insects, people, etc.
  • *(Edmund Spenser) (c.1552–1599)
  • *:Every place swarms with soldiers.
  • (lb) To fill a place as a swarm .
  • (lb) To overwhelm as by an opposing army.
  • To climb by gripping with arms and legs alternately.
  • * (1748–1828)
  • *:At the top was placed a piece of money, as a prize for those who could swarm up and seize it.
  • *1919 , , (The Moon and Sixpence) ,
  • *:She called out, and a boy came running along. He swarmed up a tree, and presently threw down a ripe nut. Ata pierced a hole in it, and the doctor took a long, refreshing draught.
  • To breed multitudes.
  • *(John Milton) (1608-1674)
  • *:Not so thick swarmed once the soil / Bedropped with blood of Gorgon.

    • See also

    *

    Anagrams

    * (l) English collective nouns