Venereal Terms: Names of Groups

(terms of Venery or group names from traditional terms of the hunt and some more modern creations that attempt to describe group characteristics of animals, humans, and groupings)

Venereal Terms (or traditional terminology) in these lists, or sections, are indicated with italics and "modern creations" are presented with normal text.

buffaloes
1. A herd of buffaloes.
2. A gang of buffaloes.
3. An obstinacy of buffaloes.
bullets
A fusillade of bullets.
bullocks
A drove of bullocks.
bureaucrats
1. A maze of bureaucrats.
2. A confusion of bureaucrats.
3. An inefficiency of bureaucrats.
4. A waste of bureaucrats.
buses
A lurch of buses.
butterflies
1. A flight of butterflies.
2. A rabble of butterflies.
camels
1. A herd of camels.
2. A flock of camels.
candidatus (Latin) (noun)
A candidate for a public office in Roman times.

The term candidate is derived from a person who was a candidatus, "clothed in white", which was symbolical of the supposed purity of the person.

cardiologists lexicomedy (s) (noun), cardiologists lexicomedies (pl)
1. A flutter of cardiologists.
2. A click of cardiologists.
3. A fibrillation of cardiologists.
cards (playing)
1. A pack of cards.
2. A deck of cards.
cars
A fleet of cars.
caterpillars
An army of caterpillars.
cats
1. A clowder of cats. ("clouder" is the same word as "clutter", according to Lipton.)
2. A clutter of cats.
3. A kindle of young cats.
4. A cluster of house cats.
cattle
1. A drove of cattle.
2. A herd of cattle.
cellular phones; "handies" (in Germany)
1. A babel of cellular phones.
2. An annoyance of cellular phones.
3. A craze of cellular phones.

For a better understanding of where Venereal Terms came from and the reasons for their existence in the first place, go to this Group Names: Introduction to Venereal and Other Group Terms unit.

Here is an attempt to clarify the different "hunt, hunting" and the "love, fondness" terms: venat-, "hunt, hunting"; vener-, "love, sexual references"; Names for Groups or "Venery names"; Introduction to Venereal and Other Group Terms or "Venery names".