Unkindness
noun /ˌʌnˈkaɪndnəs/ — A group of ravens — and a beautifully dark name for it.
Definition
The collective noun for a group of ravens — chosen with poetic precision, as ravens have been associated with ill omen, death, and the uncanny since at least the Norse tradition.
Beyond the definition
The person who named an unkindness of ravens understood something true about language: that the best collective nouns are not merely descriptive but interpretive. They apply a moral or emotional quality to a group, telling you how to feel about it.
Origin & history
English collective noun tradition, possibly medieval. Ravens were associated with battlefields, the Tower of London, and death omens — the name reflects all of this.
Example sentences
Illustrative sentences for learning, not verified community posts or sourced quotations.
An unkindness of ravens settled on the fence with an authority that felt intentional.
She'd always loved that it was called an unkindness — language acknowledging what ravens represent.
The unkindness wheeled overhead in silence that felt like a statement.
Synonyms
murder (of crows), conspiracy (of ravens)
Related words
Word in the Wild
See how this word appears in life, language and stories.
Illustrative sentences and imagined stories for learning — not verified sightings, interviews, or sourced quotations.
Word in focus
An unkindness of ravens
Ravens gathered around a puddle.
Here, “unkindness” names the whole gathering. Notice the animals together rather than looking for one individual with that name. The photograph illustrates the group; it is not evidence that this particular scene inspired the expression.
Image credit: Grendelkhan · CC BY-SA 4.0 (license)
Resized and converted to WebP; displayed with a fitted crop.