couple

«couple» in Mova's school dictionary: 2 people who are together, like a married pair — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 5 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

part of speech

noun (couple, couples); verb (couple, coupled — to join)

meaning for a pupil

1) A couple is 2 people who are together, like a married pair. tree →

2) A couple of things means two of them. tree →

3) In everyday talk, «a couple of» can mean a few. tree →

4) To couple is to join two things, like train cars. tree →

sense in the lessons

maths: two people, or two things; «a couple of» usually means 2; one couple = 2 people, so people = 2 × couples; everyday life: a couple of minutes, a couple of friends; stories: an old couple, a newly married couple

examples

• A couple bought 2 tickets each. tree →
• There are 8 couples at the dance, so 16 people. tree →
• She ate a couple of cookies. tree →
• Each couple brought a dish. tree →
• I'll be ready in a couple of minutes. tree →
• An old couple lives next door. tree →
• The couple danced together. tree →
• The train cars are coupled together. tree →
• The couple had one boy called Jem. tree →

note

A hidden number: one couple = 2 people, so people = 2 × couples. Trap: «a couple of» in everyday talk can mean a few, but in maths problems take it as 2.

In the corpora

• "Going out with someone" means two people are a couple who spend time together because they like each other a lot.
• Date night is when a couple goes out together, just the two of them, which keeps their friendship strong.
• A honeymoon is a holiday a couple takes just after the wedding, to rest and celebrate, just the two of them.
• A rough patch is a hard time in a relationship, with more arguing or unhappiness, and many couples come through it.
• Disagreeing is normal; talking it through is how couples decide things together.

Trees and pragmatics

Every meaning and example of «couple» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.