What Is a Collective Noun?

A collective noun is a word or phrase that refers to a group of people or things as one
entity. One common error that arises from using collective nouns is subject-verb
disagreement: writers often become confused about whether to treat a collective noun
as singular or plural. While collective nouns are mostly treated as singular, there are
exceptions.

Collective nouns represent more than one person or thing in a class. It isn’t possible to
have just one lion in a pride, and a single flower does not make a bouquet. Thus, a
collective noun always describes a plurality of one kind or another.

This mental image of “multiple” sometimes causes us to choose the wrong verb tense
with a collective noun.

INCORRECT: The choir are singing to a sold-out hall for the third time in a row. They are
performing A German Requiem by Brahms tonight.

CORRECT: The choir is singing to a sold-out hall for the third time in a row. It is performing A
German Requiem by Brahms tonight.

From the example above, we can see that the choir, though composed of many people,
is a singular unit.

Are Collective Nouns Singular or Plural?

The team is or are? The audience is or are? There are times when we use collective
nouns that would normally require a singular verb, but because of the context in
which they are used, a plural verb fits better. This happens when members of the
group stop acting as a cohesive unit and begin acting as individuals.

EXAMPLE: Today, the committee decides the fate of John’s proposal.

In this example, the collective noun “committee” is a group that has a unified purpose
today: deciding the fate of John’s proposal.

EXAMPLE: John’s proposal is so unusual that the committee are scratching their heads and furtively
glancing at each other in surprise.

In this example, the committee are acting as individuals; it is extremely unlikely that
they are scratching their heads and glancing at each other in unison, like an odd game
of Simon Says. Therefore, the committee now gets the plural verb “are.”

Similar decisions must be made when we write about animals.

EXAMPLE: The herd is grazing quietly in the meadow.

EXAMPLE: Now that they have seen the wolf, the herd are bolting off in all directions.

The act that is performed as a unit gets a singular verb, while the other gets a plural
one.

Some Collective Nouns That Are Always Singular or

Plural

Everyone, everybody, no one, and nobody are always singular.

INCORRECT: Everyone are entitled to an opinion.

CORRECT: Everyone is entitled to an opinion.

INCORRECT: No one want to hear John’s crazy ideas for waste recycling.

CORRECT: No one wants to hear John’s crazy ideas for waste recycling.

For reasons that can only be explained by tradition, “police,” when used as a
collective noun, is always plural in both American and British English.

EXAMPLE: Police are investigating a suspicious death on Reaper Street.

EXAMPLE: The Grammar Police plan to arrest three individuals involved in a subject-verb
disagreement.
Countable Nouns

Countable nouns refer to items that can be counted, even if the number might be
extraordinarily high (like counting all the people in the world, for example).
Countable nouns can be used with articles such as a/an and the or quantifiers such
as a few and many. Look at the sentence below and pay particular attention to the
countable noun:

CORRECT: Here is a cat.

Cat is singular and countable.

CORRECT: Here are a few cats.

CORRECT: Here are some cats.

MANY, FEW : COUNTABLE

MUCH, LITTLE : UNCOUNTABLE

A LOT, LOTS OF, MORE, SOME : COUNTABLE & UNCOUNTABLE

Uncountable Nouns

Uncountable nouns are nouns that come in a state or quantity that is impossible to
count; liquids are uncountable, as are things that act like liquids (sand, air). Abstract
ideas like creativity or courage are also uncountable. Uncountable nouns are always
considered to be singular, and can stand alone or be used with some, any, a little, and
much. See the examples below for reference:
CORRECT: An I.Q. test measures intelligence.

Intelligence is an uncountable noun.

INCORRECT: Students don’t seem to have many homework these days.

Because homework is an uncountable noun, it should be modified by much or a lot of,

not many.

CORRECT: Students don’t seem to have much homework these days.

CORRECT: A lot of equipment is required to play hockey safely.

Since uncountable nouns are singular, they also require singular verbs. If you’re ever
trying to decide whether to write the information is or the information are, remember
that information is an uncountable noun and therefore needs is.

INCORRECT: Good information are necessary for making good decisions.

CORRECT: Good information is necessary for making good decisions.

Additional examples of uncountable nouns include water, soil, love,

literature, and dust.