Collective nouns for animals and birds

Shrewdness of apes
Herd/pace of asses
Troop of baboons
Cete of badgers
Sloth of bears
Sward/drift/hive/erst of bees
Flock/flight/pod of birds
Herd/gang/obstinacy of buffalo
Bellowing of bullfinches
Drove of bullocks
Army of caterpillars
Clowder/glaring of cats
Herd/drove of cattle
Brood/clutch/peep of chickens
Chattering of choughs
Rag/rake of colts
Covert of coots
Herd of cranes
Bask of crocodiles
Murder of crows
Litter of cubs
Herd of curlew
Herd/mob of deer
Pack/kennel of dogs
School of dolphins
Trip of dotterel (type of plover)
Flight/dole/piteousness of doves
Paddling of ducks (on water)
Safe of ducks (on land)
Fling of dunlins
Herd/parade of elephants
Herd/gang of elk
Busyness of ferrets
Charm of finches
Shoal/run of fish
Swarm/cloud of flies
Skulk of foxes
Gaggle of geese (on land)
Skein/team/wedge of geese (in flight)
Herd of giraffes
Cloud of gnats
Flock/herd/trip of goats
Band of gorillas
Pack/covey of grouse
Down/mute/husk of hares
Cast of hawks
Siege of herons
Bloat of hippopotami
Drove/string/stud/team of horses
Pack/cry/kennel of hounds
Flight/swarm of insects
Fluther/smack of jellyfish
Mob/troop of kangaroos
Kindle/litter of kittens
Desert of lapwings
Bevy/exaltation of larks
Leap/lepe of leopards
Pride/sawt of lions
Tiding of magpies
Sord/suit of mallard
Stud of mares
Richesse of martens
Labour of moles
Troop of monkeys
Span/barren of mules
Watch of nightingales
Parliament/stare of owls
Yoke of oxen
Pandemonium of parrots
Covey of partridges
Muster of peacocks
Muster/parcel/rookery of penguins
Bevy/head of pheasants
Kit of pigeons (in flight)
Litter/herd of pigs
Congregation/stand/wing of plovers
Rush/flight of pochards
Pod/school/herd/turmoil of porpoises
Covey of ptarmigan
Litter of pups
Bevy/drift of quail
Bury of rabbits
String of racehorses
Unkindness of ravens
Crash of rhinoceros
Bevy of roe deer
Parliament/building/rookery of rooks
Hill of ruffs
Pod/herd/rookery of seals
Flock/herd/trip/mob of sheep
Dopping of sheldrake
Wisp/walk of snipe
Host of sparrows
Murmuration of starlings
Flight of swallows
Game/herd of swans (on land)
Wedge of swans (in flight)
Drift/herd/sounder of swine
Spring of teal
Knot of toads
Hover of trout
Rafter of turkeys
Bale/turn of turtles
Bunch/knob of waterfowl
School/herd/pod/gam of whales
Company/trip of wigeon
Sound of wild boar
Dout/destruction of wild cats
Team of wild ducks (in flight)
Bunch/trip/plump/know of wildfowl
Pack/rout of wolves
Fall of woodcock
Descent of woodpeckers
Herd of wrens
Zeal of zebras

— © Oxford University Press 2007 Extracted from The Oxford Dictionary and Thesaurus (ed. Maurice Waite, 2007) Buy The Oxford Dictionary and Thesaurus (RRP £30) for the offer price of £25.50 (inc p&p) from BooksFirst on 0870 1608080 or timesonline.co.uk/booksfirst

My favourite word: Disgruntled I like this word because it implies that a person who was hitherto gruntled has been deprived of their happy state of gruntledness.

— BILLY BRAGG, singer and songwriter

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