Kangaroos can be grouped under several collective nouns: a court, a herd, a mob, and a troop. The term court refers to kangaroos that have gathered in one particular spot. A herd points to kangaroos on the move together, while a mob describes a sizeable bunch that have come together in one place. A troop, meanwhile, is the word for kangaroos heading off together in the same direction.
These collective nouns carry some interesting roots. The word court traces back to the old term ‘cort’, meaning ‘enclosure’, which fits neatly with the idea of kangaroos gathered together in one area. The word herd, by contrast, comes from the old form ‘hierde’, meaning ‘to drive’.
