![]() And for more fascinating details about the natural world, see Fun Facts about Animals to Inspire Your Kids’ Curiosity. (photo courtesy of worradmu via Freedigitalphotos. Collective Nouns List of Animal Names For a wall art and homeschool supplies with collective nouns for animals, check out our Collective Nouns of the Wild poster series in our Get the Kids Outside shop. And I wonder if a memory of elephants led to the phrase “an elephant never forgets”? Which are your favourite collective nouns for animals? I particularly like pandemonium of parrots and smack of jellyfish as they seem rather apt. You might wish to familiarise yourself with this alphabetical selection of collective nouns for animals, birds and insects after all, you never know when they might come in handy! Some are fairly logical, others less so… Many of these nouns are still in circulation today, but some never really caught on, such as a fall of woodcocks and a shrewdness of apes. The first ‘collection’ of collective nouns in English is “The Book of St Albans “, printed in 1486 in three parts covering hawking, hunting and heraldry. ![]() For example, a parliament of rooks, a murmuration of starlings and an unkindness of ravens can each be traced back as far as the 15th century. The collective nouns for animals are often bizarre (e.g., an 'opera' of canaries, a 'whoop' of chimpanzees). Many have been with us for centuries, while new variations or completely new ones are emerging all the time.Īccording to the Oxford Dictionary blog, the first collective nouns were typically for groups of animals and birds. Origins of collective nounsĪs with most words in the English language, collective nouns have evolved over time. Yet there are many other collective nouns for animals – known as “terms of venery” – that are less well known but equally worthy. For instance, there are specific collective nouns for birds, lizards, monkeys, elephants, crocodiles, etc. There are specific collective nouns that are used for specific animals. The animal kingdom is enormous, and so is the list of collective nouns used to represent a group of animals. This system works even if you’ve been at intermediate level for years and you think you can’t remember words very well.Most people will be familiar with the terms gaggle of geese, litter of puppies, pride of lions and school of dolphins. Common collective nouns used for animals. 50 Collective Nouns for Groups of Animals By Erika Berlin Jun 8, 2023, 1:48 PM EDT WLDavies/iStock / WLDavies/iStock You know which animals move in packs, schools, and herds, but what. If you’re ready to get to advanced level, I also have free vocabulary updates and a live workshop for you. It is the ONLY system that uses the Triple “A” (‘AAA’) method to give you short, 20-minute lessons. My new advanced vocabulary course will help you go from intermediate to advanced English without studying for hours. Get An Advanced English Vocabulary – In 30 Days You get this when a flock of birds flies together almost in a swarm. ![]() Use this with animals (often apes) which live together in family groups.Īnd my favourite (you can see this in autumn)…Ī murmuration of starlings. Use this with animals and insects that live together. Use this with young animals that are born together.Ī swarm of bees, flies or locusts. Use this with wild animals that hunt together. The collective noun for crocodiles is bask. Use this when you have many animals in the group.Ī flock of sheep, or birds (pigeons, seagulls, etc). Crocodiles are powerful and impressive creatures, and their collective nouns of bask, float, congregation, and team are a testament to their strength in numbers. Use this with many animals that eat grass.Ī herd of elephants, cows, goats or buffalo. Collective Nouns – Animals, Birds & Insects You can often use these with more than one animal, but often the animals share certain characteristics. Here’s a list of ten common collective nouns. We use many different “collective nouns” to talk about groups of animals, birds or insects.
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