I’ve had a weirdly stressful day. The kind where your house gets taken over by a group of teenagers, and you just stand there trying to figure out what to call them.
So let’s talk about something fun for a minute.
Here’s the word game I play when life gets loud: I name the group of people around me the way we’d name a group of animals. And honestly? It works better than you’d expect.
First, do you know the collective nouns for animals? They’re charming:
- a kaleidoscope of butterflies
- a murder of crows
- a memory of elephants
- a flamboyance of flamingos
- a pride of lions
- a mischief of mice
- a parliament of owls
- a prickle of porcupines
- a crash of rhinos
- a bed of sloths
- a dazzle of zebras
And in my old dating profile, I actually put one of these in there. The shark one. Looked great on paper.
The other day, a gazillion teenagers walked down the street and into our house, and for a second they looked like a tornado of teenagers — all swirly and energetic and leaving a mess behind. Or maybe a blur? A mood?
A couple of days later, I spent the afternoon with a rainbow of toddlers. And before that, a solid hug of friends. I know it’s cheesy, but it feels right.
Here’s the thing: the animal lists have been around for centuries, but the family ones are pure invention. There’s no rulebook. You get to make it up on the spot, which is the whole point. It takes a chaotic household and gives it a name — and once you’ve named the chaos, it stops feeling quite so chaotic.
In England, we’re definitely a chinwag of Goddards. What about you? What collective noun would describe your family, or the group of people you hang out with most? Drop it in the comments — I’d genuinely love to hear them.
P.S. Tell me three things about what you read, and I’ll recommend a book you’ll love. And I actually like the word “moist.” Go figure.
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