Andy and I have been having this argument as to how many is “a couple.” For example, if I say, “I would like a couple of pancakes,” I mean that I want two. But Andy believes that “a couple” can be two or three. What do you think?
Filed under: The more you know
* i got nailed on this one in the past. i used to think like andy. but apparently “a couple” is 2, and “a few” is more than that.
I’m siding with the ladies on this one. A couple is two. A few is three.
Let’s be glad he’s talking about pancakes and not dating/marriage…
Two is a couple. : )
Ok. Next time somebody says to you ladies “I’ll be there in a couple of minutes” I’d like you to take out your watch and see if they actually show up in two minutes or if, in fact, they are using “a couple of minutes” as code for an small, yet undetermined amount of time.
I think it’s kind of like me telling Liv, “I’ll help you in a second.” A couple can definitely be used in a non-literal way–you’re right about that, Andy!
talking about time, I think couple is generally more elastic, even if less precise. or maybe it’s just if you say ‘i’ll be there in a couple minutes’ and are more than a couple minutes, you’re really just late.
but a couple pancakes vs. a few pancakes… i’d interpret the former as 2 for sure.