OK, you asked your friend, " What is a group of ferrets called ," and they gave you a ridiculous answer: a business.

A business of ferrets? Come on, now. But before you get in a fight with your friend about their inability to take anything seriously, you should know that they're right. A group of ferrets is called a business.

Turns out, there's a rational explanation hiding in a centuries-old transcription error.

The Business of Ferrets

The term "business" for a group of ferrets likely arose from a mistake. In the Middle Ages, English hunters compiled lists of collective nouns for animals. Many of these were based on behaviors or characteristics: a murder of crows, a pride" of lions—and yes, a business of ferrets.

But here's the catch: The original term might have been "busyness," d

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