Collective Nouns, Common Used Collective Nouns for Persons, Animals and Things,Subject Verb Agreement with Collective Nouns etc… Please follow the list for detailed expressions, lists and examples;
What is Collective Noun?
Collective noun is a noun which describes a group of things oe people. It means collective noun is a single noun that is made up of more than one thing or person or etc. For example: family, group, herd, team.
Subject -Verb Agreement
Whether a Collective Noun is used with Singular or Plural Verb?
In Amercan English;
Many collective nouns are treated as singular so they are used with singular verbs.
Examples:
- My family comes from Swedish.
- Our team has worked severeal weeks on this project.
- The staff of the company was working very hard.
- The new family has moved into this flat.
In British English;
Many collective nouns are treated both as singular and plural so they can used both with singular and plural verbs.
Examples:
- My family come from Swedish.
- Our team have worked severeal weeks on this project.
- The staff of the company were working very hard.
- The new family have moved into this flat.
However,
some collective nouns are always singular or plural in both American and British English.
always singular collective nouns ( we use singlular verb )
- everyone
- everybody
- no one
- no body
Examples:
- Everyone has their own ideas about the best way to bring up children.
- No one is making a sound.
always plural collective noun ( we use plural verb )
- police
- people
Examples:
- The police have found Sarah’s bicycle.
- People like to be made to feel important.
Generally, we can say that collective nouns can be singular or plural. It depends on the context of the sentence.
- If the members of a group act together as a unit or a whole, we use a singular verb.
( we can also say that if we or speakers want to emphasize the group as a whole, we use singular verb in this situation.)
Examples:
- The band of musicians was playing.
- The brazilian team is playing very well.
- The staff of the company was working very hard.
- The new family has moved into this flat.
- If the members of a group stop acting together as a unit or a whole and act as individuals, it is better to use a plural verb.
( we can also say that if we or speakers want to emphasize the individuals in a group rather than regarding the group as a whole, we use plural verb in this situation)
Examples:
- The flock are running in all different direction.
- The committee were divided in their opinion.
- The class are studying on different projects.
- The family were each doing different jobs.
Note 1:
If you are not sure whether to use a singular or a plural verb with a collective noun in ypur writing or speaking, you can put “members of” before the collective noun and then use a plural verb.
Examples:
- All the members of the family are thinking alike.
- The members of the jury were lefting the court with a police escort.
Note 2:
If we use a collective noun as a singular noun, we can not treat the noun as a plural in the same sentence and vice versa. It means we can not use or consider a collective noun both as singular and plural in the same sentence.
Examples:
- The band are doing the last gig of their world-tour. ( not its )
- The group is happy with its performance. ( not their )
- The committee were divided in their opinion regarding this issue. ( not its )
Note 3:
- If the collective noun “number” is used with “a”, we use plural verb.
- ıf the collective noun “number” is with “the”, we use singular verb.
Examples:
- A number of children are educated at home.
- The number of workers is increased in the company.
Note 4:
When the collective nouns couple and pair refer to people, we use plural verb.
Examples:
- A couple of people have objected to the proposal.
- A pair of students are lifting a heavy trunk.
You can see detailed collective noun list used for persons, animals and things below;
For Persons;
For Animals;
For Things;
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