Growing up in Malaysia, I got confused what ‘a couple’ meant. Some people say it means two, but in usage, it seems like it can be interchanged with a few. So which is it? The Oxford Dictionary offers 3 definitions for a couple as a noun.
1) two people who are married or otherwise closely associated romantically
E.g.: There’s an elderly couple on the bench. This assumes a man and woman
2) two people or things of the same sort considered together:
E.g. A couple of dancers. This means exactly two (2). It helps if there is supporting information to establish exactly two.
3) informal an indefinite small number:
E.g. I’ll be there in a couple of days. It basically means a few. And though it says informal, usage wise, it’s very widespread
So how to tell between 2 and 3? It’s pretty close, how do I know if they go together or not. If the word couple is used to quantify something, then we need to see the situation and context. Maybe that’s where the informal comes in. If the statement is casual, seemingly unimportant, undecided or uncertain, then couple means few.
If the situation is formal, for example a board meeting, if that number or quantifier is very very critical, then couple means exactly two. The above is my humble observation of what a couple means. Please comment if you disagree.
“I can’t believe this. Boss only gave me a couple of days to prepare this presentation.” – Exactly 2
“It’s too early, I’ll need a couple of hours to sober up.” – A few
“Did you notice there were a couple of hot guys checking us out at the mall?” – Exactly 2
“Whoa, did you see that? A couple of hot chicks just landed on our shores.” – Exactly 2
“How many friends am I bringing to tonight’s party? Just a couple.” – Waaay more than 2
1) two people who are married or otherwise closely associated romantically
E.g.: There’s an elderly couple on the bench. This assumes a man and woman
2) two people or things of the same sort considered together:
E.g. A couple of dancers. This means exactly two (2). It helps if there is supporting information to establish exactly two.
3) informal an indefinite small number:
E.g. I’ll be there in a couple of days. It basically means a few. And though it says informal, usage wise, it’s very widespread
So how to tell between 2 and 3? It’s pretty close, how do I know if they go together or not. If the word couple is used to quantify something, then we need to see the situation and context. Maybe that’s where the informal comes in. If the statement is casual, seemingly unimportant, undecided or uncertain, then couple means few.
If the situation is formal, for example a board meeting, if that number or quantifier is very very critical, then couple means exactly two. The above is my humble observation of what a couple means. Please comment if you disagree.
“I can’t believe this. Boss only gave me a couple of days to prepare this presentation.” – Exactly 2
“It’s too early, I’ll need a couple of hours to sober up.” – A few
“Did you notice there were a couple of hot guys checking us out at the mall?” – Exactly 2
“Whoa, did you see that? A couple of hot chicks just landed on our shores.” – Exactly 2
“How many friends am I bringing to tonight’s party? Just a couple.” – Waaay more than 2
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