[3] The species is unusual for lacking a worker caste, the queens and males living entirely off the care of the pavement ant.

[5] In a 2015 revision of the subfamily Myrmicinae, Philip S. Ward, Seán G. Brady, Brian L. Fisher, and Ted R. Schultz classified the genus Teleutomyrmex as a junior synonym of Tetramorium.

[8] Ward and colleagues' replacement specific epithet refers to the species's inquiline behavior (Latin: inquilīnus, lit.

[11] Tetramorium inquilinum constantly sends chemical signals that trick host ants into accepting them as full members of the colony.

Being ectoparasitic, Tetramorium inquilinum spends most of its adult life clinging to the backs of its hosts, especially queens.