verb agreement with collective nouns

A present-tense verb (as well as a simple past form of the verb be) must agree in number with its subject. That is, the verb
must be singular if its subject is singular, and plural if its subject is plural.

Matching subjects and verbs sounds easy. But confusion can arise when collective nouns are used as subjects.

Collective nouns

A collective noun is used to refer to an entire group of persons, animals or things; it therefore includes more than one member.
For example, the collective noun family stands for parents and children. A pack contains many wolves. A flotilla is made up of
several boats.

Here are some examples of common collective nouns:

 People: board, choir, class, committee, family, group, jury, panel, staff

 Animals: flock, herd, pod, swarm
 Things: bunch, collection, fleet, flotilla, pack, set

Singular and plural verbs with collective nouns

A plural collective noun takes a plural verb: Families enjoy this restaurant.

A singular collective noun usually takes a singular verb: Our family enjoys this restaurant.

But there are some cases where a singular collective noun actually expresses a plural idea and needs a plural verb. The
guidelines below will help you decide whether a singular collective noun takes a singular or plural verb.

When to use a singular verb

When all the members of a collective noun are performing an action as a unit (and that’s usually the case), use a singular verb.

 The chamber orchestra often plays at the Art Centre.

 The cast is celebrating the success of the play with a party after the performance.
 A wolf pack hunts as a group.
 The fleet was anchored in the channel.
 When to use a plural verb

When the members of a collective noun are performing an action as individuals, use a plural verb. In this case, all or some
members of the group are doing something independently of the other members; the group is not acting together as a unit.

 The orchestra are tuning their instruments.

 The cast have been practising their lines.
 The flock were running off in every direction.
 The staff disagree on the proposal.

In many cases, it may sound more natural to make the subject plural in form by adding a word like members:

 The members of the orchestra are tuning their instruments.

 The cast members have been practising their lines.
 The staff members disagree on the proposal.

Collective names for groups of animals are said to date back to medieval times, which may explain why some
of these names can be strange, surprising or downright funny to us, such as an unkindness of ravens. In the
spirit of the fanciful language used by our ancestors, more modern terms for animal groups can have a fun
twist, like a crash of rhinoceroses.
Whether it is a group of mammals, birds or even insects, there is a unique collective noun to identify the
specific group, although some of these names are rarely used. Most people are likely to use the general
term flock for a group of eagles, rather than the proper term convocation. Still, it's good to know the correct
collective noun, even if it's just to wow your friends.

Collective Names for Animals

We've gathered together a list of 60 groups of animals and their collective nouns - some animal groups can
have more than one collective noun - that you may or may not have heard of. Whenever animals gather in
groups, they are formally called:
 Apes: a shrewdness
 Badgers: a cete
 Bats: a colony or a camp
 Bears: a sloth or a sleuth
 Bees: a swarm
 Buffalo: a gang or obstinacy
 Camels: a caravan
 Cats: a clowder or a glaring; Kittens: a litter or a kindle; Wild cats: a destruction
 Cobras: a quiver
 Crocodiles: a bask
 Crows: a murder
 Dogs: a pack; Puppies: a litter
 Donkeys: a drove
 Eagles: a convocation
 Elephants: a parade
 Elk: a gang or a herd
 Falcons: a cast
 Ferrets: a business
 Fish: a school
 Flamingos: a stand
 Fox: a charm
 Frogs: an army
 Geese: a gaggle
 Giraffes: a tower
 Gorillas: a band
 Hippopotami: a bloat
 Hyenas: a cackle
 Jaguars: a shadow
 Jellyfish: a smack
 Kangaroos: a troop or a mob
 Lemurs: a conspiracy
 Leopards: a leap
 Lions: a pride
 Moles: a labor
 Monkeys: a barrel or a troop
 Mules: a pack
 Otters: a family
 Oxen: a team or a yoke
 Owls: a parliament
 Parrots: a pandemonium
 Pigs: a drift or drove (younger pigs) or a sounder or a team (older pigs)
 Porcupines: a prickle
 Rabbits: a herd
 Rats: a colony
 Ravens: an unkindness
 Rhinoceroses: a crash
 Shark: a shiver
 Skunk: a stench
 Snakes: a nest
 Squirrels: a dray or a scurry
 Stingrays: a fever
 Swans: a bevy or a game (if in flight: a wedge)
 Tigers: an ambush or a streak
 Toads: a knot
 Turkeys: a gang or a rafter
 Turtles: a bale or a nest
 Weasels: a colony, a gang or a pack
 Whales: a pod, a school, or a gam
 Wolves: a pack
 Zebras: a zeal
Collective nouns for objects & things
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Below is a list of commonly used collective nouns for objects, fruits, plants and other miscellaneous things.

Some of these collective nouns are very old, dating back to medieval times, while others are fairly new. Not many
people use a ‘moan’ of lamantations anymore, but a ‘cluster’ of computers has never been more relevant.

If you know of any other collective nouns that should be added to this list, use the comments box and the bottom of
this page.
Item Collective Nouns

Aircraft Flight, Wing

Angels Choir, Chorus,Flight, Host, Pinhead

Apples Bushel

Arrows Quiver

Artillery Battery

Asteroids Belt

Bananas Bunch, Comb

Beans Hill

Bells Peal, Change, Carillons

Bills/Notes Wad

Books Library

Bread Batch

Canyons Maze

Cars Fleet, Mayhem, Stack

Cards Deck, Hand, Pack

Chairs Fold

Cigarettes Packet

Circuits Bank

Clothes Suit
Clouds Soufflé

Coins Roll, Roleau

Computers Cluster, Network (when linked)

Condiments Accompaniment

Corn Sheaf, Shock (pile of stalks)

Cymbals Sign

Diamond Cluster

Dice Luck

Dictionaries Meaning

Documents Dossier, Wealth

Dominoes Falling

Drinks Round

Drugs Cocktail

Drums Kettle

Dung Pile

Eggs Clutch

Errands Hassle

Estimations Bout

Flowers Bunch, Bouquet

Footsteps Patter
Furniture Suite

Gears Rack

Ghosts Fright

Gloves Elicat

Gods Pantheon

Grass Tuft

Grapes Bunch

Grits Mess

Gunships Hailstorm

Hair Lock, Tuz, Wig

Hammers Morning

Harps Twangle

Helicopters Hover

Hills Undulation

Icebergs Crush, Drift

Impediments Vagary

Information Wealth

Islands Archipelago, Chain, Group

Jewels Cache

Keys Ring
Knots Cluster, Medusa

Lamentations Moan

Lavatories Flush

Laws (bad) Strangle

Leaves Autumn

Lines Pencil

Locks (on a canal) Flight

Lorries Convoy, Fleet

Machine guns Nest

Maps Atlas

Money Cache, Roll, Rouleau, Wad

Monitors Bank

Mountains Range

Nouns Collective, Propriety

Objects Collection

Orchids Coterie

Ovoids Metamorphosis

Palindromes Tenet

Paper Pad, Ream

Particulars Bill

Pearls Rope, String

Peas Pods

Pistols Brace (two pistols)

Planes Stack

Pleasure Glut, Guilt

Poems Anthology

Pottage Mess

Puddles Splash

Puns Groan

Reasons Rainbow

Rebuttals Quiver

Reeds Clump

Ribs Rack

Riches Embarrassment

Rubbish Heap, Pile

Salt Lot

Satellites Constellation

Second thoughts Clutch

Shells Midden

Ships Armada, Fleet, Flotilla

Shoelaces Knot

Shoes Pair, Scandal

Silk Screens Pull

Similes Superfluity

Smelt Quantity

Software Crash

Spatulas Beautification

Sphincters Clench

Stairs Flight

Stamps Collection

Stars Cluster, Constellation, Galaxy, Wonder

Steps Flight

Sticks Fagot

Sub-atomic particles Minuscule

Submarines Pack, Wolfpack

Suitcases Pack

Tanks Clank, Clatter

Tarts Jam
Tasks Agenda

Teddy bears Hug

Tests Battery

Things Bunch, Cluster

Tomorrows Promise

Tongues Convention, Jagger

Toys Assembly

Tranquilizers Equanimity

Trash Heap, Pile

Trees Clump, Coupe, Forest, Grove, Stand, Stillness, Thicket, Wood

Tools Kit, Set

Trucks Convoy

Trumpets Flourish

Truths Pity

Tubas Tumult

Turds Steam

Twitches Embarrassment

Umbrellas Phalanx

Wagers Book

Weed Stash
 Wheat Sheaf

Willows Bed

Windmills Tilt

Winnings Purse

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 WORD LISTS
 LIST OF COLLECTIVE NOUNS FOR PEOPLE

List of Collective Nouns for People

Collective nouns are words that, although treated as singular, describe a group of people, places, things or
ideas. A wide variety of such words exist, but not all of them can be used in every context. The classic example
is collective nouns for people. A band of soldiers is fine. A band of rocks is not. Use our list to get comfortable
with both common collective nouns for people and some downright weird ones.

Group nouns for people take a number of different forms. Some are generic: they can describe almost any
collection of people. Others are limited by number, by the sort of people they describe, or by any number of
other variables. Here's a list - indeed, a list of lists - of words for groups of people.

Common Collective Nouns for People

First and foremost, these are the words you need if you just want to describe a group of people. These words all
have connotations of their own but are generally safe to use for any group of people. For example, you could
have a "team of athletes practicing" or a "team of painters decorating."
Here is a list of words that can be used for different groups of people:
 Association
 Band
 Body
 Bunch
 Class
 Cohort
 Company
 Crowd
 Gang
 Group
 Lot
 Mass
 Party
 Posse
 Set
 Society
 Squad
 Staff
 Team
 Tribe

Specific Collective Nouns for People

Some group names refer to particular people, or groups that have gathered for a specific reason. Here follow
some of those words, with extra context.
 A board of directors: As a collective noun, the word "board" almost always refers to a group of people
that possesses authority, as in an advisory board, a board of investors or a board of trustees.
 A bevy of beauties: The word "bevy" originally referred to a group of game birds, but over time became a
term for a group of almost anything. It's a bit out of date, and is most commonly used when the subjects
are beautiful or desirable in some way.
 A congregation of churchgoers: The word "congregation" is unusual, in that it began as a general term
and has grown more specific, whereas most collective nouns begin specific and grow more general.
Especially in American English, "congregation" almost always refers to people gathered to worship.
 A crew of sailors: "Crew" began as a military term for reinforcements, but has since extended to a
number of situations, particularly professional ones. Workers from carpenters to programmers can be
referred to as a crew.
 A mob of rioters: "Mob" is usually pejorative, used to imply a group is chaotic, dangerous or otherwise
unpleasant. Given a capital letter, "the Mob" is an idiom for organized crime. In the lower case, it could refer
to anything from unruly kids to an armed uprising.
 A troupe of actors: The word "troupe" doesn't always refer to actors but does always refer to performers
of one kind of another. A "troupe" might also consist of acrobats, clowns, dancers or mimes.
 A unit of soldiers: "Unit" is most commonly a collective noun in the military, but is sometimes used in
other official or semi-official contexts, as in "a unit of police." Battalion, platoon, regiment,
squadron, and troop are other words that originated with the military but have taken on more general
usage.

Unique Collective Nouns

As with groups of animals, English has words for groups of people that are not just specific but unique referring
to one and only one kind of person. Some interesting examples include:
 A conflagration of arsonists
 A conjunction of grammarians
 A coven of witches
 A den of thieves
 A flight of dancers
 A glitter of generals
 A host of angels
 A phalanx of flautists
 A rage of maidens
 A quiz of teachers
 A slate of candidates
 A sprig of vegetarians
 A tabernacle of bankers
 A thought of barons
 A wheeze of joggers
 A wiggle of Elvis impersonators
 An attitude of teenagers
 An illusion of magicians
 An impatience of wives
 An unhappiness of husbands

Nouns and the Collectivity Thereof

Collective nouns have always been an opportunity for wordsmiths to exercise their sense of humor. For more
collective nouns and their often glorious oddness, have a look at our collection of collective nouns for
animals (a group of cats is a clowder!).
That said, they're still words, and words can be tricky. Collective nouns, in particular, can pose challenging
grammatical questions of number and case. If you're having trouble, check out our extensive guide to collective
nouns.