Below is a set of interactive exercises on collective nouns to familiarise yourself with the names of groups of animals, people, and things in English. I have included a worksheet that you can download for free.
1. Exercise 1: multiple-choice questions
Choose the correct collective nouns for each group of animals.
1. Choose the correct collective noun for a group of dolphins.
2. A group of fish from the same species swimming in harmony is called a .....
3. A ...... of owls.
4. We came across a ...... of lions at Kruger’s Park yesterday.
5. There’s a ...... of bees on the roof.
6. I saw a sheep chased by a ...... of wolves.
7. A ...... of monkeys usually come here to eat the bananas.
8. A noisy ...... of cats woke me up in the middle of the night.
9. I need someone to take care of my ...... of puppies while I’m away.
10. It’s not difficult to care for a ...... of chicks.
2. Exercise 2: sentence completion
Fill in the blanks with the correct collective nouns.
1. I want a beautiful of pearls for my birthday.
2. Can I pick a of grapes?
3. I can’t go out today. I’ve got a of things to do.
4. Where can I buy a beautiful of flowers for my girlfriend?
5. I hate these guys; they’re just a of jerks.
6. Can you check if there’s a of cards in my bag?
7. Each symbol represents a of stars.
8. I guess he’s not hungry yet. He’s eaten a of bananas.
9. Where are you going with this tall of books?
10. I found a beautiful of tables on Amazon.
3. Collective nouns worksheet
This worksheet includes a list of collective nouns. Your task is to write each noun under the picture it matches.
4. Answers to the worksheet
- A gaggle of geese
- A herd of cattle
- A colony of penguins
- A sheaf of wheat
- A line of people
- A wad of banknotes
- A squad
- A string of beads
- An angry mob
- A bloom of jellyfish
- A shoal of fish
- A school of fish