Collective Nouns for English Language Learners

This is the second of two courses designed to be simple to learn English for Chinese students. This article explains collective nouns.

we have looked at plural nouns  (student => students) and ‘uncountable’ nouns (rice, meat, coffee, etc.). But if we do not use numbers then what do we use? We use ‘quantifiers’

There are special words for these types of nouns in a collective (more than one) – these are called collective nouns

Collective noun worksheet (pdf download)

What are Collective Nouns

Collective nouns are used to define a group of people, animals or objects

1 banana, 2 bananas, many bananas, a bunch of bananas

bunch is the collective noun

1 bird, 2 birds, 3 birds, many birds, a flock of birds

flock is the collective noun

1 person, 2 people, many people, a crowd of people (a group of people)

crowd and group are  collective nouns

Common Collective Nouns

General collective nouns can be used for many types of collections:

  • A group of _______
  • A pack of _______
  • A crowd of _______
  • A slice of _______
  • A piece of _______
  • A gang of _______
  • A collection of _______
  • A range of _______
  • A flock of _______
  • A herd of _______
  • A set of _______
  • A group of friends
  • A group of students
  • A group of birds
  • A pack of wolves
  • A pack of cards
  • A pack of cigarettes
  • A crowd of people
  • A crowd of fans
  • A crowd of protesters
  • A slice of pizza
  • A slice of cake
  • A slice of bread
  • A piece of advice
  • A piece of information
  • A piece of chocolate
  • A gang of criminals
  • A gang of bikers
  • A gang of kids

 

  • A collection of books
  • A collection of art
  • A collection of stamps
  • A range of mountains
  • A range of products
  • A range of temperatures
  • A flock of birds
  • A flock of sheep
  • A flock of geese
  • A herd of elephants
  • A herd of cattle
  • A herd of deer
  • A set of tools
  • A set of dishes
  • A set of goals

 

Uncountable Foods with Quantifiers

the name of the container

  • bag
  • bowl
  • cup
  • glass
  • jar
  • plate
  • spoon(ful)

a general term for the size

  • piece
  • slice
  • pinch
  • A bag of flour
  • A bottle of oil
  • A bowl of rice
  • A bowl of soup
  • A bowl of cereal
  • A cup of coffee
  • A cup of tea
  • A glass of milk
  • A glass of water
  • A jar of honey
  • A jar of jam
  • A jar of mustard
  • A piece of cheese
  • A piece of fruit
  • A piece of meat
  • A pinch of salt
  • A plate of pasta
  • A plate of seafood
  • A slice of bread
  • A slice of butter
  • A spoonful of sugar

Exercise #1

Choose the correct quantifier

  1. A can/bunch of beans
  2. A piece/bowl of cake
  3. A box/piece of cereal
  4. A plate/piece of chocolate
  5. A bowl/bar of chocolate
  6. A chunk/can of coke
  7. A bag/slice of crisps
  8. A chunk/bunch of grapes
  9. A plate/jar of honey
  10. A bag/carton of juice
  11. A slice/glass of lemonade
  12. A piece/glass of milk
  13. A bowl/slice of pizza
  14. A cup/plate of tea
  15. A slice/bowl of rice

Exercise #2

Complete the collective nouns

stamps, bread, flowers (2), stairs, cards (2), keys, drawers, books, grapes, ships

  1. A collection of stamps
  2. A chest of drawers
  3. A deck of cards
  4. A bouquet of flowers
  5. A collection of ________
  6. A bunch of ________
  7. A bunch of ________
  8. A bunch of ________
  9. A bunch of ________
  10. A flight of ________
  11. A fleet of ________
  12. A pack of ________
  13. A loaf of ________

Exercise #3

Read this passage

On a sunny weekend, friends visited a zoo to explore the animals. Their favorites were a pride of lions rested under a tree, a herd of elephants, a troop of monkeys and a pack of wolves.

Later, they ventured to a farm close by. Near a pond where a shoal of fish swam, there was a lot of noise from a gaggle of geese, although it didn’t affect the flock of birds overhead, a flock of sheep or a herd of cows who carried on grazing peacefully. In the farm’s garden, a swarm of bees buzzed around collecting nectar.

They also noticed an army of ants, carrying bits of food. To conclude the day, they visited a friend’s house. On a previous visit, their friend’s cat had a litter of kittens. This time, their friend’s dog proudly presented a litter of puppies.

Complete the collective nouns.

  1. A  Colony  of  Ants, An  Army  of  Ants
  2. A  S_ _ _ _  of  Bees
  3. A _ _ _ _  of Fish, A School of Fish
  4. A  F_ _ _ _  of Birds
  5. A P_ _ _ _  of Lions
  6. A H_ _ _  of Cows
  7. A H_ _ _  of Elephants
  8. A F_ _ _ _  of Sheep
  9. A G_ _ _ _ _ of Geese
  10. A P_ _ _  of Wolves
  11. A T_ _ _ _  of Monkeys
  12. A L_ _ _ _ _  of Puppies
  13. A L_ _ _ _ _  of Kittens

Exercise #4

Complete the sentences with the right collective noun (the letter are jumbled up for each quantifier)

ocfk  eeflt  edhr  aegnr  bchnu  aflo  abdor

  1. Sue wants to visit a _ _ _ _ _ of mountains.
  2. A _ _ _ _ _ of birds is gathering together by the lake.
  3. The farmer is looking after the _ _ _ _ of cows.
  4. Matt went to the grocery to buy a _ _ _ _ _of grapes.
  5. The company bought a new _ _ _ _ _ of vans.
  6. Cut a slice off the  _ _ _ _ of bread, please.
  7. She gained a seat on the _ _ _ _ _ of directors.

Conclusion

If you want to learn more about nouns visit the nouns page, or visit the parts of speech page.

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