Collective nouns are special words used to refer to a group of objects. This lesson covers examples and lists of collective nouns for things, giving you practical examples to help you understand their use.
For those eager to learn more, explore partitive nouns for things with examples and ESL pictures.
Collective Nouns For Things
Examples of Collective Nouns for Things
A bar of soap
- It wasn’t so long ago that every new car looked like a bar of soap.
A battery of tests
- “We want to put the earth through a battery of tests,” he said.
A bolt of lightning
- It was like a bolt of lightning hit the group at the same time.
A bunch of books
- I’ll send her a bunch of books.
A bunch of keys
- He had a bunch of keys on his belt.
A chest of drawers
- A chest of drawers that took up too much space, space she needed, maybe, to heal or grow.
A clump of reeds
- I waited behind, going up on tiptoes to see over a clump of reeds.
A deck of cards
- She took a deck of cards and began to lay them out.
A fleet of ships
- He owns a fleet of ships.
A fleet of vehicles
- It does not have a fleet of vehicles for road repair, or a yard where the fleet is parked.
A flight of stairs
- We walked up a flight of stairs.
A gallon of gasoline
- A gallon of ethanol has a lot less energy than a gallon of gasoline.
A group of islands
- Trinidad and Tobago is actually in the Caribbean, a group of islands northeast of Venezuela.
A grove of trees
- Matt and his crew make camp in a grove of trees nearby.
A hedge of bushes
- Apparently, he had gone behind a hedge of bushes to turn on the spigot when the sting occurred.
A library of books
- There is a big library of books in my school.
A pack of cards
- I have to dispatch a pack of cards among relatives.
A pair of shoes
- She opened her suitcase and took out a pair of shoes.
A piece of furniture
- A chair is a piece of furniture.
A piece of paper
- He wrote his phone number on a piece of paper.
A quiver of arrows
- Here’s Rama, the demon slayer, with a bow and a quiver of arrows.
A ream of paper
- I had packed a word processor and a ream of paper.
A roll of film/cloth
- How many photos can be taken with a roll of film?
A series of events
- A series of events is planned to mark the anniversary of the war.
A set of books
- He gave me a set of books called Greek Myth mythic.
A set of tools
- Amy bought him a set of tools for metal and woodworking.
A sheaf of notes/papers/arrows/corn
- He searched for and found a sheaf of papers in cabinet.
A shelf of books
- He led the man to the front of the store, to a shelf of books by George R. R. Martin.
A stack of chairs
- The man is shown climbing over an empty baby crib and struggling to get over a stack of chairs as he enters the room.
A string of beads
- Alice was wearing a string of beads.
A suite of furniture
- They looked for a suite of furniture for their bedroom or living room.
A suite of rooms
- They lived in a suite of rooms with a garden, rather like a ground-floor flat.
A tube of toothpaste
- They lived on the streets and once shared a tube of toothpaste as their “dinner”.
A wad of notes
- He took a wad of notes from his pocket.
An agenda of tasks
- For a committee to be efficient, it needs to follow an agenda of tasks to be accomplished.
An album of stamps/autographs/photographs
- Joseph showed me an album of photographs illustrating government projects.
List of Collective Nouns for Things
- A deck of cards
- An item/A piece of furniture
- A pane of glass
- A blade of grass
- A bale of hay
- A glimmer of hope
- A piece of jewellery
- A bolt/A flash of Lightning
- A stroke of luck
- A pile of money
- A bit/A piece/An item of news
- A drop of rain
- A ray of sunshine
- A pinch of salt
- A bar of soap
- A tube of toothpaste
- A ball of wool
- A bar of soap
- A battery of tests
- A bolt of lightning
- A bunch of books
- A bunch of keys
- A bunch of keys
- A chest of drawers
- A clump of reeds
- A deck of cards
- A fleet of ships
- A fleet of vehicles
- A flight of stairs
- A gallon of gasoline
- A group of friends
- A group of islands
- A grove of trees
- A hedge of bushes
- A library of books
- A pack of cards
- A pair of shoes
- A piece of furniture
- A piece of paper
- A quiver of arrows
- A ream of paper
- A roll of film/cloth
- A series of events
- A set of books
- A set of tools
- A sheaf of notes/papers/arrows/corn
- A shelf of books
- A stack of chairs
- A string of beads
- A suite of furniture
- A suite of rooms
- A tube of toothpaste
- A wad of notes
- An agenda of tasks
- An album of stamps/autographs/photographs
Collective Nouns for Things Video
Collective Nouns For Things Practice Quiz (A2-B1)
Q1
Question 1: What does FLEET mean when we talk about a fleet of ships?
Q2
Question 2: Which word is closest in meaning to BUNCH when we say 'a bunch of books'?
Q3
Question 3: A: 'What is on the desk?' B: 'There is a ___ of paper. Someone was writing notes.'
Q4
Question 4: The teacher handed out a ___ of paper to every student in the class.
Q5