Nouns 09 - Collective Nouns

Besides these words used for imaginary creatures we also have some unusual collective nouns for animals and other things. Does the phrase 'a PARLIAMENT of owls' ring a bell? PARLIAMENT is an unusual collective noun used to describe a group of owls. Similarly, did you know that AUTUMN and BALLET are used as collective nouns to describe particular groups? Do you know which ones? The answer is for leaves and swans respectively.

The subject of collective nouns in English is, probably, the most inventive as they are so unusual and the range of words that they cover is enormous. Every conceivable species is given a collective noun for its group. Again, as in many cases in English, a collective noun can be used for different groups of animals and also the same group of animals can have multiple collective nouns. For instance, a group of monkeys can be called a troop, a cartload, a mission, a tribe or a wilderness! In the quiz that follows, we want you to find out how many unusual collective nouns you can recollect.