Collective nouns

It is important to learn collective nouns. It’s confusing to learn them sometimes due to two main reasons:

1.    One object may have various collective noun names

Example: For fish, we have school/shoal/run/haul/draught/catch

2.    Various objects may have the same collective noun names

Example: Ants, soldiers, caterpillars have the same collective ‘army’

Here is a list to know by middle school

Animals:

A colony of ants

An army of ants (marching together)

A flock of birds

A flight of birds (flying together)

A flock of sheep

A herd of cattle/goats/buffaloes/cows

A hive of bees

A swarm of bees (flying together)

A litter of cubs/ puppies/kittens

A host of sparrows

A team/stable of horses

A pride of lions

A pack of wolves/dogs/hounds

A clutter of Cats

A Team of Ducks (when flying)

A Paddling of Ducks (when on water)

A Sleuth of Bears

A Knot of frogs/toads

A murder of crows

A flamboyance of flamingos

A smack of jellyfish

A shrewdness of apes

A troop/barrel of monkeys

A tribe of goats

A bloat of hippopotami

A congress of baboons

A convocation of eagles

A parliament of owls

A pod of dolphins

An intrusion of cockroaches

A caravan/train of camels (moving together)

A herd of camels

A hide of tigers

An ambush of tigers

A school of fish (single species moving together)

A catch of fish (caught for consumption as food)

A haul of fish (caught using nets)

A shoal of fish ( fish living together)

A coalition of cheetahs

A brood of hens

A family/cartload of chimpanzees

A bask/bank of crocodiles

A band/troop of gorillas

A mob of kangaroos

A nest/colony of mice

A consortium of octopuses

A bed/knot/pit/slither of snakes

A pod of whales

A herd of zebras /elephants/ deer

A congregation of alligators

People:

A class of students

A choir of singers

A crew of sailors

A band of musicians

A bunch of crooks

A crowd of people/spectators

A team of players

A troupe of artists/dancers

A pack/gang of thieves

A staff of employees

A regiment/army of soldiers

A tribe of natives

An audience of listeners

A panel of experts

A gang of laborers

A flock of tourists

A board of directors

A squad/posse of policemen

A cast of actors

A bevy of beauties

A gaggle/riot of comedians

A wisdom of grandparents

A scoop of journalists

A bench/sentence of judges

A pantheon of gods

A quiz of teachers

A delegation of ambassadors

A doctrine of doctors

A giggle of girls

A bevy of girls (dressed beautifully)

A persistence of parents

An equivocation of politicians

Things:

A group of islands

A galaxy of stars

A wad of notes

A stack of wood

A fleet of ships

A string of pearls

An album of stamps/autographs/photographs

A hedge of bushes

A library of books

A basket of fruit

A bowl of rice

A pair of shoes

A bouquet of flowers

A bunch of keys

A chest of drawers

A pack of lies

A range of mountains

A cloud of dust

A deck of cards

A quiver of Arrows

A stand of saplings

A fleet of cars (parked/stationed)

A convoy of cars (going somewhere together)

A series of events

A row of apartments

An anthology of poems

An atlas of maps

A belt of asteroids

A bunch of grapes/bananas

A grove of trees (that form a continuous canopy and give shade)

A forest of trees (large group of trees in a very large area)

A stand of trees (one species of trees)

An orchard of trees (fruit or nut trees planted for commercial purposes)

A clump of trees (small group different species)

A plantation of trees (large group grown to be cut down for wood)

A heap of trash

A schedule of activities

A bushel of apples

A museum of art

An outfit of clothes

A bundle of clothes (soiled/dirty)

A basket/bowl of fruits

A suite of furniture

A lock/tuft of hair

A flight of stairs

A fleet of vessels

A basket/tray of vegetables