The long-running series in which readers answer other readers’ questions on subjects ranging from trivial flights of fancy to profound scientific concepts What is the collective noun for a group of ...

The couple is going to purchase the house? Or the couple are going to purchase the house? Even after all my years of editing, I can still get tripped up trying to make verbs agree with collective ...

Why is Christian Science in our name? Our name is about honesty. The Monitor is owned by The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and we’ve always been transparent about that. The church publishes the ...

Naming collective nouns is a time-honored alliteration of bards dating back to medieval days. Their linguistic talents have bequeathed to the English language some intriguing terms, especially for ...

With my book about facts and knowledge coming out soon, it might be worth reviewing possible words for collective nouns for facts. Any one of these gift ideas will make your favorite bookworm very ...

The collective noun for owls is a parliament. A group of kittens makes a kindle. And if you see several hedgehogs, you've got a prickle on your hands. But what do you call a group of black holes? Once ...

Every once in a while I stumble on an interesting collective noun, usually for animals: a parliament of owls, a knot of toads, an exaltation of larks. I have heard an "awkward" suggested as an ...

The Supreme Court’s controversial decision Jan. 21, 2010, in the so-called Citizens United case reopened the legal can of worms sometimes referred to as “corporate personhood.” That ruling expanded ...