collective noun - meaning and definition. What is collective noun
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What (who) is collective noun - definition

COLLECTION OF THINGS TAKEN AS A WHOLE
Collective nouns/All sorted by collective term; Lists of collective nouns; Nouns of assemblage; English collective noun; Collective plural; Term of Venery; Terms of Venery; Terms of venery; Term of venery; English collective nouns; Group noun; Collective Nouns; Collective nouns; Noun of assimilation; Collective singular; English collective nouns of venery; Noun of multitude; Collective plurals

collective noun         
(collective nouns)
A collective noun is a noun such as 'family' or 'team' that refers to a group of people or things.
N-COUNT
collective noun         
¦ noun Grammar a count noun that denotes a group of individuals (e.g. assembly, family, crew).
Usage
A collective noun can be used with either a singular verb (my family was always hard-working) or a plural verb (his family were disappointed in him). Generally speaking, in Britain it is more usual for collective nouns to be followed by a plural verb while in the US the opposite is true.
Collective noun         
In linguistics, a collective noun is a word referring to a collection of things taken as a whole. Most collective nouns in everyday speech are not specific to one kind of thing.

Wikipedia

Collective noun

In linguistics, a collective noun is a word referring to a collection of things taken as a whole. Most collective nouns in everyday speech are not specific to one kind of thing. For example, the collective noun "group" can be applied to people ("a group of people"), or dogs ("a group of dogs"), or objects ("a group of stones").

Some collective nouns are specific to one kind of thing, especially terms of venery, which identify groups of specific animals. For example, "pride" as a term of venery always refers to lions, never to dogs or cows. Other examples come from popular culture such as a group of owls, which is called a "parliament".

Different forms of English handle verb agreement with collective count nouns differently. For example, users of British English generally accept that collective nouns take either singular or plural verb forms depending on context and the metonymic shift that it implies.

Examples of use of collective noun
1. They are the young, a collective noun, like the electorate.
2. He enjoyed sharing ideas and jokes with others in his profession: the collective noun for cartoonists was, he said, a groan or a grumble.
3. And if you are interested, the collective noun for the bird is a ‘tiding‘. Perhaps it ought to be a ‘chatter‘, for all of them were chattering away.
4. If the collective noun for a normal group of starfish is a constellation, then this pitiful sight on the Kent coastline was more like a galaxy.
5. And, if you do, at least catch the villains white–handed (the characteristic appearance of peroxide burns). PG Urben Kenilworth, Warks Surely the collective noun for professors (Letters, August 1') is an expertise?