Collective Nouns for Insects 🐞
List of Collective Nouns for Insects 🦋 Insect Plurals
ADDucation’s list of collective nouns for insects also includes the names for immature/infant insects along with the singular and plural spellings for insects. The first list of collective nouns was published in “The Book of St Albans” circa 1500 and it wasn’t definitive – it was based on folklore, humor and the whim of the publisher and it’s the same today. New collective terms of venery are made up all the time (e.g. “minibeasts” instead of “bugs”) which either stand the test of time or fall into disuse like “a fall of woodcocks” – the English language constantly evolves to meet our requirements.
- ADDucation’s collective nouns for insects list compiled by Joe Connor and last updated .
ADDucation Tips: Click column headings with arrows to sort collective nouns for insects. Reload page for original sort order. Resize your browser to full screen and/or zoom out to display as many columns as possible. Click the ➕ icon to reveal any hidden columns.. Start typing in the Filter table box to find collective nouns for insects, bugs & beetles inside the table.
| Insect | Young / immature / offspring baby infant called? | Collective nouns a group of insects or arachnids[1] | Insect Plurals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Insect (generic) | Larva or Nymph | A flight of insects, a plague of insects, a swarm of insects, a horde of insects, a rabble of insects. | Insects |
| Ant 🐜 | Antling | An army of ants, a colony of ants, a nest of ants, a bike of ants, a swarm of flying ants. | Ants |
| Bee 🐝 | Larva | A grist of bees*, a hive of bees, a swarm of bees, a flight of bees and a bike of bees (bike is old English word for next, colony and swarm). | Bees |
| Beetle🐞 | Grub | A group of beetles is called a colony of beetles or a swarm of beetles, | Beetles |
| Butterfly 🦋 | Caterpillar (Larva) | A rabble* of butterflies, a rainbow of butterflies*, a kaleidoscope of butterflies*, a swarm of butterflies*, an army of caterpillars. | Butterflies |
| Click Beetle | Wireworm (Larva) | A colony of click beetles. | Click Beetles |
| Cockroach | Nymph | An intrusion of cockroaches. | Cockroaches |
| Dragonfly | Nymph | A cluster of dragonflies. | Dragonflies |
| Fly | Maggots (Larva) | A business of flies, a hatch of flies, a cloud of flies, a swarm of flies. | Flies |
| Gnat | Larva | A horde of gnats, a cloud of gnats, a swarm of of gnats. | Gnats |
| Grasshopper, Cricket 🦗 | Nymph | A cloud of grasshoppers, a cluster of grasshoppers. | Grasshoppers |
| Hornet | Larva | A bike of hornets, a nest of hornets. | Hornets |
| Hoverfly (Syrphidae) | Maggots (Larva) | Hoverfly itself is a collective term for over 6000 winged insects in Syrphidae family. The often mimic wasps and bees. | Hoverflies |
| Ladybird, Ladybug, Lady Beetle 🐞 | Larva | A loveliness of ladybugs. | Ladybirds, Ladybugs, Lady Beetles |
| Louse | Nymph | A flock of lice, a colony of lice, an infestation of lice. | Lice |
| Locust | Nymph | A plague of locusts, one of the best known collective nouns for insects. | Locusts |
| Midge | Larva | A bite of midges*. | Midges |
| Mite[1] | Larva | A mite of mites. | Mites |
| Mosquito 🦟 | Larva | A scourge of mosquitoes*. | Mosquitoes |
| Moth | Caterpillar (Larva) | A whisper or flutter of moths. A universe of moths. | Moths |
| Sawfly (Symphyta) | Caterpillar (Larva) | Sawfly itself is a collective term for over 8000 winged insects whose caterpillar-like larvae often clump together in the Symphyta order. Adult sawflies don’t have a “wasp waist” but often mimic wasps and bees. | Sawflies |
| Scorpion[1]🦂 | Scorpling (Nymph) | A bed of scorpions, a nest of scorpions. | Scorpions |
| Spider[1] 🕷🕸 | Spiderlings (Larva) | A cluster of spiders*, a clutter of spiders*. | Spiders |
| Stick Insect | Nymph | A bushel of stick insects*. | Stick Insects |
| Termite | Nymph | A brood of termites, a colony of termites, a nest of termites, a swarm of termites. | Termites |
| Wasp | Larva | A nest of wasps, a plague of wasps, pail or swarm of wasps. | Wasps |
See also: Terms of Venery for People… | Collective terms for Birds… | Names for groups of animals…
* Notes: [1]Arachnids are NOT insects, they are included in this list of collective nouns for insects for your convenience. Some collective nouns for insects are poetic terms. There’s no official collective nouns committee, or authority, which approves new collective nouns so you can invent them yourself. Many collective nouns for insects only appear in lists of collective nouns – we only add new collective nouns if we can find references in published literature or other authority websites.
ADDucation Lists Related to Collective Nouns for Insects:
- Collective nouns for insects in German: Namen von Tiergruppen…
- Help improve ADDucation’s list of collective nouns for insects by adding your comments below…
Man is also in woman, you know? Human is a relatively new word so “mankind” was actually gender neutral.
HUmankind and Nature (not Mankind). How hard is it to add two letters, to stop pretending that masculine-only words, which were coined when only men had agency in the world, are OK in the 21st century?
Good point. I hadn’t really thought about it until your comment. We have a new website in progress and I’ll make that change when it launches.