CNJ+ October 2023

COLLECTIVE NOUNS How Well do We Know Them? By Pam Teel

Collective nouns are nouns that refer to groups of people, objects or animals. Some we are very familiar with, but others we might just have to scratch our heads a bit and tax the brain. Below are a few collective nouns for animals. Let’s just see how smart you are. Would love to hear from anyone who gets these all right!!! An interesting note- many of these terms orig inated,or at least, were recorded in a 1486 book called, “The Book of hawking, Hunting, Blasing of arms” by a woman named Julia Berners. Ms. Ber ners was thought to be the first woman published in the English language!

The answers are at the end. We’ll start out with some easy well- known ones, but be warned, they do get tougher! Have Fun and NO CHEATING! See how many you can get without looking! 1. A _______ of birds 2. A _______ of geese 3. An ______ of frogs 4. A_______ of sheep. When driven as a group they are known as a drive or drove of sheep. 5. A group of owls are known as a _____ 6. A ______ of flamingo’s 7. A ______ of bears 8. A party of polar bears is called a ____ 9. A group of pandas are known as an _______ 10. We call them buffalo, but the correct name for them is bison. We say a herd of bison, but the other collective noun for them is an _________ 11. A _____ of zebra. Also known as a dazzle of zebra 12. An ____ of aardvarks 13. A group of wildebeests are referred to as______ 14. A _____ of hippos. They don’t actually float but they can nap under water. One of the deadliest mammals on earth! 15. A group of cuddly kittens born to the same mother is caller a ______ 16. An assembly of unrelated kittens is called a ________. Also referred to as a kindle 17. A ______ of insects 18. A ______ of fish. Also referred to as a ______ of fish

19. A _____ of apes 20. A _____ of bats. Also referred to as a company of bats. 21. A _____ of beavers. Also commonly called a colony of beavers. 22. A _____ of chipmunks 23. A _____ of cobra’s 24. A _____of cows. 12 cows together are called a __________ 25. A _____ of coyotes

26. A _____ of dogs 27. A _____ of elks 28. A _____of giraffes 29. A _____ of kangaroos. Also known as a troop. 30. A _____ of otters 31. A _____ of squirrels 32. A _____ of wolves 33. 33. Gathering of peacocks is called an ______

Answers : 1. flock 2. gaggle 3. army 4. herd 5. parliament 6. flamboyance 7. sloth or sleuth 8. celebration 9. embarrassment 10. obstinacy 11. zeal 12. armory 13. confusion 14. bloat 15. litter 16. clowder of cats 17. swarm 18. shoal or school 19. troop 20. colony 21. lodge 22. scurry 23. quiver 24. drift,- flink 25. band 26. pack 27. gang 28. tower 29. mob 30. romp 31. dray 32. pack 33. ostentation

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