Collective Nouns
Terms marked * belong to 15th-century lists of ‘proper terms’, notably that in the Book of St Albans
attributed to Dame Juliana Barnes (1486). Many of these are fanciful or humorous terms which probably
never had any real currency, but have been taken up by Joseph Strutt in Sports and Pastimes of England
(1801) and by other antiquarian writers.
a *shrewdness of apes
a herd or *pace of asses
a *cete of badgers
a *sloth or *sleuth of bears
a hive of bees; a swarm, drift, or bike of bees
a flock, flight, (dial.) parcel, pod, *fleet, or *dissimulation of (small) birds; a volary of birds in an aviary
a sounder of wild boar
a *blush of boys
a herd or gang of buffalo
a *clowder or *glaring of cats; a *dowt (= ?do-out) or *destruction of wild cats
a herd, drove, (dial.) drift, or (US & Austral.) mob of cattle
a brood, (dial.) cletch or clutch, or *peep of chickens
a *chattering or *clattering of choughs
a *drunkship of cobblers
a *rag or *rake of colts
a *hastiness of cooks
a *covert of coots
a herd of cranes
a litter of cubs
a herd of curlew
a *cowardice of curs
a herd or mob of deer
a pack or kennel of dogs
a trip of dotterel
a flight, *dole, or *piteousness of doves
a raft, bunch, or *paddling of ducks on water; a team of wild ducks in flight
a fling of dunlins
a herd of elephants
a herd or (US) gang of elk
a *business of ferrets
a charm or *chirm of finches
a shoal of fish; a run of fish in motion
a cloud of flies
a *stalk of foresters
a *skulk of foxes
a gaggle or (in the air) a skein, team, or wedge of geese
a herd of giraffes
a flock, herd, or (dial.) trip of goats
a pack or covey of grouse
a *husk or *down of hares
a cast of hawks let fly
an *observance of hermits
a *siege of herons
a stud or *haras of (breeding) horses; (dial.) a team of horses
a kennel, pack, cry, or *mute of hounds
a flight or swarm of insects
a mob or troop of kangaroos
a kindle of kittens
a bevy of ladies
a *desert of lapwing
an *exaltation or bevy of larks
a *leap of leopards
a pride of lions
a *tiding of magpies
a *sord or *sute (= suit) of mallard
a *richesse of martens
a *faith of merchants
a *labour of moles
a troop of monkeys
a *barren of mules
a *watch of nightingales
a *superfluity of nuns
a covey of partridges
a *muster of peacocks
a *malapertness (= impertinence) of pedlars
a rookery of penguins
a head or (dial.) nye of pheasants
a kit of pigeons flying together
a herd of pigs
a stand, wing, or *congregation of plovers
a rush or flight of pochards
a herd, pod, or school of porpoises
a *pity of prisoners
a covey of ptarmigan
a litter of pups
a bevy or drift of quail
a string of racehorses
an *unkindness of ravens
a bevy of roe deer
a parliament or *building of rooks
a hill of ruffs
a herd or rookery of seals; a pod of seals
a flock, herd, (dial.) drift or trip, or (Austral.) mob of sheep
a *dopping of sheldrake
a wisp or *walk of snipe
a *host of sparrows
a *murmuration of starlings
a flight of swallows
a game or herd of swans; a wedge of swans in the air
a herd of swine; a *sounder of tame swine, a *drift of wild swine
a *glozing (= fawning) of taverners
a *spring of teal
a bunch or knob of waterfowl
a school, herd, or gam of whales; a pod of whales; a grind of bottle-nosed whales
a company or trip of wigeon
a bunch, trip, or plump of wildfowl; a knob (less than 30) of wildfowl
a pack or *rout of wolves
a gaggle of women (derog.)
a *fall of woodcock
a herd of wrens
