COLLECTIVE NOUNS

Collective nouns A collective noun denotes a collection of people, things, animals, emotions or concepts considered as a single whole. A collective noun is usually treated as singular. Consider the expression ‘a committee of members’ There can be several members but only one committee. In this case, ‘members’ is a common noun whereas ‘committee’ is a collective noun. More examples of collective nouns are given below. A bunch of grapes or keys A gang of bandits A class of students An army of soldiers A hive of bees A fleet of ships A constellation of stars or galaxy An archipelago of islands A bevy of girls A crowd of people A mob of people A swarm of flies A jury of judges A herd of cattle A flock of sheep A team of players Examples are given below. This class consists of fifty students. The jury was unanimous in its decision. The crowd was too large to be controlled by the police. The mob attacked the police station. The Australian cricket team is scheduled to visit India in July. A bevy of girls entered the garden. A bunch of keys was lying on the table. You can find a swarm of flies hovering over uncovered trays of sweets. The crew of sailors controlled the ship in the stormy sea. Be first to know when grammar rules change! Sign up to our newsletter here: englishgrammar.org (It's free) Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org) COLLECTIVE NOUNS PEOPLE an army of soldiers a bevy of beauties/girls a band of musicians a band of robbers a board of directors a body of men a bunch of crooks a caravan of gypsies a choir of singers a class of pupils a class of students a company of actors a company of soldiers a congregation of worshippers a crew of sailors a crowd of spectators a crowd of people a dynasty of kings a galaxy of beautiful women a galaxy of film stars a gang of crooks a gang of labourers a gang of prisoners a gang of robbers a gang of thieves a horde of savages a host of angels a line of kings/rulers a mob of rioters a group of dancers a group of singers a pack of rascals a pack of thieves a party of friends a patrol of policemen a posse of policemen a regiment of soldiers a staff of employees a staff of servants a staff of teachers a team of players a tribe of natives a troop of scouts a troupe of artistes a troupe of dancers a troupe of performers a party of friends THINGS an album of autographs an album of photographs an album of stamps an anthology of poems an archipelago of islands a bale of cotton a basket of fruit a batch of bread a battery of guns a block of flats a book of exercises a book of notes a bouquet of flowers a bowl of rice a hail of bullets a hand of bananas (each a finger) a harvest of wheat/corn a heap of rubbish a heap of ruins a hedge of bushes a heap of stones a layer of soil/dirt a library of books a line of cars a list of names a mass of ruins/hair a necklace of pearls an outfit of clothes a bunch of bananas a bunch of flowers a bunch of grapes a bunch of keys a bundle of rags/old clothes a bundle of firewood/sticks a bundle of hay a catalogue of prices/goods a chain of mountains a chest of drawers a cluster of coconuts a cluster of grapes a cloud of dust a clump of bushes a clump of trees a collection of coins a collection of curiosities a collection of pictures a collection of relics a collection of stamps a column of smoke a comb of bananas a compendium of games a constellation of stars a cluster of diamonds a cluster of stars a clutch of eggs a crate of fruit a crop of apples a fall of rain a fall of snow a fleet of motor-cars/taxis a fleet of ships a flight of aeroplanes a flight of steps a forest of trees a galaxy of stars a garland of flowers a glossary of difficult words/phrases a group of islands a grove of trees an orchard of fruit trees a pack of cards a pack of lies a packet of cigarettes a packet of letters a pair of shoes a pencil of rays a quiver of arrows a range of hills a range of mountains a ream of paper a reel of thread/film a roll of film/cloth a rope of pearls a row of houses a series of events a set of china a set of clubs a set of tools a sheaf of arrows a sheaf of corn a sheaf of grain a sheaf of papers a sheaf of wheat a shower of blows a shower of rain a stack of arms a stack of corn a stack of hay a stack of timber a stack of wood a stock of wood a string of beads a string of pearls a suit of clothes a suite of furniture a suite of rooms a tuft of grass a tuft of hair a wad of currency/notes a wreath of flowers ANIMALS an army of ants a bevy of quail a brood/flock of chickens a catch of fish a cloud of flies a cloud of insects a cloud of locusts a colony of gulls a drove of cattle a drove of horses a flight of birds a flight of doves a flight of locusts a flight of swallows a flock of birds a flock of geese a flock of sheep a gaggle of geese a haul of fish a herd of buffaloes a herd of cattle a herd of deer a herd of elephants a herd of goats a herd of swine a hive of bees a host of sparrows a kindle of kittens a litter of cubs a litter of piglets a litter of kittens a litter of puppies a menagerie of wild animals a muster of peacocks a nest of ants a nest of mice a nest of rabbits a pack of hounds a pack of wolves a plague of insects a plague of locusts a pride of lions a school of herrings/other small a a fish a school of porpoises a school of whales a shoal of fish a skein of wild geese in flight a string of horses a stud of horses a swarm of ants a swarm of bees a swarm of insects a swarm of locusts a team of horses a team of oxen a train of camels a tribe of goats a troop of lions a troop of monkeys a zoo of wild animals Collective nouns exercise The verb has to agree with the subject in number and person. Complete the following sentences using a verb form that agrees with the subject. 1. Our audience …………… always been the affluent urban elite. has have 2. The audience at the open-air stadium …………………… not as large as had been expected. was were 3. The audience ……………………. enthralled by her performance. was were 4. Audiences throughout the world ……………… been captivated by Chaplin’s films. have has 5. The public ………………… stringent laws to deal with terrorists. want wants 6. The public …………… not satisfied with the relief measures taken during the floods. was were 7. The team ………………… practising at the stadium. was were 8. The team ………………. for Australia tomorrow. is leaving are leaving 9. A family with four children ………………. next door. live lives 10. My family …………………. going to be there. is are Answers 1. Our audience has always been the affluent urban elite. 2. The audience at the open-air stadium was not as large as had been expected. 3. The audience was enthralled by her performance. 4. Audiences throughout the world have been captivated by Chaplin’s films. 5. The public wants stringent laws to deal with terrorists. 6. The public was not satisfied with the relief measures taken during the floods. 7. The team was practising at the stadium. 8. The team is leaving for Australia tomorrow. 9. A family with four children lives next door. 10. My family is going to be there. Be first to know when grammar rules change! Sign up to our newsletter here: englishgrammar.org (It's free) Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org) Collective nouns worksheet Read the following sentences. A large crowd gathered in the street. The hungry fox saw a bunch of grapes hanging from the vine. We were attacked by a swarm of bees. Here the words crowd, bunch and swarm stand for a collection of people, a collection of grapes and a collection of bees. Nouns which are thus used to denote a collection of people or things are called collective nouns. Complete the following sentences using appropriate collective nouns. 1. A ……………………………………. of locusts attacked a ………………………………… of cattle. 2. A ……………………………………… of birds is always a beautiful sight. 3. They welcomed the chief guest with a …………………………………. of flowers. 4. As we drove down the country side, we saw a ……………………………………………. of sheep grazing in the fields. 5. The ………………………………… of thieves has been arrested by the police. 6. There we saw a man carrying a ……………………………………… of clothes on his head. 7. A …………………………………………. of musicians was hired to perform at the party. 8. My friend has a fine …………………………………… of old stamps. Answers 1. A swarm of locusts attacked a herd of cattle. 2. A flight of birds is always a beautiful sight. 3. They welcomed the chief guest with a bouquet of flowers. 4. As we drove down the country side, we saw a flock of sheep grazing in the fields. 5. The gang of thieves has been arrested by the police. 6. There we saw a man carrying a bundle of clothes on his head. 7. A band of musicians was hired to perform at the party. 8. My friend has a fine collection of old stamps. Be first to know when grammar rules change! Sign up to our newsletter here: englishgrammar.org (It's free) Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org) Colle ct ive Nouns S Sushila Naidu PRT, K.V NTPC Ramagundam A collective noun is a word used to define a group of objects, where "objects" can be people, animals, emotions, inanimate things A flock of birds A herd of elephants A pack of wolves A shoal of fishes A fleet of ships A crowd of people A jury of judges A pride of Lions A kindle of kittens A muster of peacocks A leap of Leopard A scourge of mosquitoes A parliament of owls A creche of penguins A swarm of rats A crew of sailors A platoon of soldiers A flight of stairs A Swarm of Bees This powerpoint was kindly donated to www.worldofteaching.com http://www.worldofteaching.com Is home to well over a thousand powerpoints submitted by teachers This a free site Please visit and I hope it will help in your teaching English Banana.com Test Your Research Skills Animals Complete the gaps with the correct collective noun for each group of animals These nouns are sometimes called ‘terms of venery’: parliament colony shoal nest gaggle sloth dole cete leap murder congregation dray pride herd flock A of geese A of lions A of bats A of buffalo A of crows A of bears A of fish A of squirrels A of owls 10 A of pigeons 11 A of leopards 12 A of hornets 13 A of doves 14 A of badgers 15 A of alligators For more fun tests, quizzes and games log onto www.englishbanana.com now! This worksheet can be photocopied and used without charge English Banana.com Test Your Research Skills Animals Answers: A gaggle of geese A pride of lions A colony of bats A herd of buffalo A murder of crows A sloth of bears A shoal of fish A dray of squirrels A parliament of owls 10 A flock of pigeons 11 A leap of leopards 12 A nest of hornets 13 A dole of doves 14 A cete of badgers 15 A congregation of alligators For more fun tests, quizzes and games log onto www.englishbanana.com now! This worksheet can be photocopied and used without charge