Collective Nouns — Definition and Examples
What is a collective noun?
A collective noun identifies a single entity made up of a group of people, animals, places, things, or ideas. While there are multiple items within the group, the group itself is recognized as one unit.
Singular and plural forms of collective nouns
Collective nouns can be singular or plural, depending on their use in a sentence.
Functioning as a single unit makes the collective noun singular and requires a singular verb and singular pronouns.
When members of the group act as individuals, it becomes a plural collective noun and requires plural pronouns and a plural verb:
The faculty acted as a group in making the decision. Therefore, “faculty” is classified as a singular collective noun.
Since it would be unlikely that every faculty member was shaking their head in unison, they are now acting as individuals, making “faculty” a plural collective noun.
The following sentences provide examples of how and when to use singular versus plural nouns and the appropriate subject-verb agreement:
| Collective noun | Singular example | Plural example |
|---|---|---|
| Family | The family is flying to Europe over the summer. | The family members are taking different flights to Europe. |
| Herd | The herd is staying on the farmer’s property. | Parts of the herd are leaving the farmer’s property. |
| Bushel | The bushel is ripe enough to eat. | Most of the apples in the bushel are ripe enough to eat. |
Collective noun examples
While there are over 200 in the English language, the most common collective nouns include the following:
| Group of people | Group of animals | Group of things |
|---|---|---|
| army | bed of oysters | batch |
| audience | colony of ants | bunch |
| class | flock of birds | bundle |
| crowd | gaggle of geese | bushel |
| faculty | herd of cows | cluster |
| family | litter of kittens | fleet |
| gang | murder of crows | grove |
| group | pack of wolves | pack |
| jury | pride of lions | pile |
| squad | school of fish | set |
| team | swarm of bees | stack |
The U.S. Army is a proper noun that is also a collective noun.
The following sentences use examples of collective nouns:
People
The choir received a standing ovation from the audience.
The jury delivered their verdict to the judge.
Despite the loss of their quarterback, the team stayed positive.
Animals
Luckily, she closed the window before the swarm got into the house.
It was hard to pick just one kitten from the litter.
The troop of baboons made its nest for the night.
Things
The fleet of ships left the harbor this morning.
While cleaning out the desk, we found a stack of old magazines.
Stephanie returned from the grocery store with a bunch of bananas.
