A Flock of Seagulls

Do you remember the New Wave band from the 1980’s called A Flock of Seagulls? It’s their name that interests me, not their music, because specific groups of animals (like seagulls) are one example of collective nouns.

A collective noun is, simply, a group. If you have a particular group, there usually is a specific name for it. Of course, you can use the word ‘group’ to describe any collection of people or things (such as, a group of students, a group of dogs, a group of ships) but how boring, uninteresting, and mundane is that?! Get specific with collective nouns and become a colorful speaker instead of a dull one.

Groups of animals: army of ants, swarm of bees, pack of dogs, herd of elephants, and more.

Groups of people: team, audience, crowd, family, army, class, committee, department, jury, troupe, and more.

Groups of things: pad of paper, box of crayons, bouquet of flowers, galaxy of stars, range of mountains, cloud of dust, and more.