A collective noun is a noun that can be singular in form whilst referring to a group of people or things.

1. UNIVERSIDADNACIONALDE CHIMBORAZO
FACULTAD DE CIENCIAS DE LA EDUCACIÓN, HUMANAS Y
TECNOLOGÍAS
CARRERA DE IDIOMAS
GRAMMAR V
COLLECTIVE NOUNS
INTEGRANTS:
RONALD MARROQUÍN
PATRICIA VINUEZA
2015

2. COLLECTIVE NOUNS
A collective noun is a noun that can be singular in form whilst referring to a group of
people or things.
Groups of people - army, audience, band, choir, class, committee, crew, family, gang, jury,
orchestra, police, staff, team, trio
Groups of animals - colony, flock, herd, pack, pod, school, swarm
Groups of things - bunch, bundle, clump, pair, set, stack
PLURAL OR SINGULAR?
 When the unit is acting in unison, it is appropriate to use the singular.
Ex. The class waits [singular verb] for its [singular pronoun] teacher quietly. (The
class is referred to as a unit acting in unison. The students are all doing the same
thing at the same time.)
 When the members of the unit are acting as individuals, it is appropriate to use plural
forms of verbs and pronouns.
Ex. The class begin [plural verb] their [plural pronoun] homework assignments while
they [plural pronoun] wait [plural verb] for their [plural pronoun] teacher. (The
students are a unit, but are acting as individuals -- they each doing their own
homework assignments.)

3. Common Collective Nouns
 Groups of people working together
Army: an organized military force equipped for fighting on land.
Cast: the actors in a certain movie or play.
Crew: all the working members on a ship or plane.
Family: a group of people usually related by blood.
Gang: an organized group of criminals.
Staff: the people who work in a company or place of work.
Team: a group of individuals playing on the same side generally with the same
objectives.
 Groups of people in general
Audience: spectators or listeners at a public event.
Crowd: a group of people, gathered together.
Mob: a large disorderly crowd.
Movement: a group of people with similar political/musical/social ideals.
Throng: a busy group of people or animals.
 Groups of animals
Herd: a herd of cows, a herd of goats, a herd of deer
Flock: a flock of sheep, a flock of birds
Litter: a litter of kittens (usually of baby animals)
Pack: a pack of wolves, a pack of dogs
Shoal / School: a shoal of fish, a school of fish
Swarm: a swarm of bees (swarm is used for a group of flying insects)

4. Exercise.
1. Some spectators in the
crow d
disagreed with the referee's decision.
2. She was attacked by a
sw arm
of wasps.
3. The
audience
applauded the new play enthusiastically.
4. That cruise ship carries 150 passengers and a
crew
of 85.
5. He was the leader of a well-known
gang
of criminals.
6. A
mob
of shouting people overturned cars, set the fire to shops and attacked the
police station.
7. In spring
flock
of birds arrive back in Britain after spending the winter in Africa.
Choose the best answer.
1. I had so much fun in Hawaii swimming with a _________ of
fish.
A. school
B. bevy
C. army

5. 2. A ______ of cows was transported to a farm in Texas for slaughter.
A. pack
B. herd/ drove
C. pod
3. On my African trip, I saw a ________ of lions.
A. pride
B. pack
C. bundle
4. The boy saw a _______ of sheep grazing in the fields.
A. flock
B. swarm
C. bevy

6. LINKOGRAPHY
Learning English,(2015). Collective nouns. Recuperado de:
http://www.learnenglish.de/grammar/listcollectivenouns.html#sthash.GKRlMpF1.dpuf
Your Dictionary,(1996-2015).Collective nouns. Recuperado de:
http://grammar.yourdictionary.com/parts-of-speech/nouns/Collective-Nouns.html
Users. Collective nouns. Recuperado de:
http://users.tinyonline.co.uk/gswithenbank/collnoun.htm
CHompchomp,(1997-2015). The collective noun. Recuperado de:
http://www.chompchomp.com/terms/collectivenoun.htm
Wikipedia, (2015). Collective nouns. Recuperado de:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collective_noun
ELSA. Collective nouns exercises. Recuperado de:
http://esldivlabs.vcc.ca/ELSA/Instructor_Web_Exercises/Vocabulary/Collective_Nouns_M
ultiple_Choice.htm