couple
gb/kˈʌpəl/ us/kˈʌpəl/
A2
English
~ 800
Senses
0 senses
Noun
A2
entity
1
Two romantic partners
Two people who love each other or are dating.
Usage pattern:
[a couple] [verb]
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes confuse 'couple' with 'pair' when talking about non-romantic contexts; 'couple' usually refers to people in a relationship in everyday speech.
Synonyms
pair (General term for two of something; not limited to romance.)
Antonyms
single (Refers to a person not in a romantic relationship.)
Collocations
married couple
|young couple
|happy couple
|celebrity couple
Themes
relationships
|daily life
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- The couple walked hand in hand along the beach.
- They are a lovely couple who have been together for ten years.
- The famous couple announced their engagement yesterday.
Learner examples
- The couple is sitting in the park.
- A young couple lives next door.
- My parents are a happy couple.
Noun
A2
quantity
2
Two or a few items
Two or a few people or things.
Usage pattern:
a couple of [things]
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes think 'a couple of' always means exactly two; in informal English it can mean two or three.
Synonyms
few (Indefinite small number, not necessarily two.)
Antonyms
many (Refers to a large number instead of a small one.)
Collocations
a couple of days
|a couple of friends
|a couple of times
Themes
daily life
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- I’ll be there in a couple of minutes.
- She bought a couple of books at the store.
- We met a couple of times last year.
Learner examples
- I need a couple of eggs.
- We saw a couple of birds in the tree.
- He called me a couple of times.
Verb
formal
B2
action
3
Join or link together
To join two things together.
Usage pattern:
to couple [something] with [something]
Common mistake:
Learners may confuse this with 'couple' meaning 'two people'; as a verb, it means to join things, often in technical contexts.
Synonyms
connect (General term for joining; not as formal-sounding.)
Antonyms
separate (To move things apart instead of joining them.)
Collocations
couple together
|couple with
Themes
technology
|mechanics
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- The train cars were coupled together before departure.
- The new software couples efficiency with user-friendliness.
- They coupled the trailer to the truck.
Learner examples
- He coupled the two wires together.
- The train cars are coupled before the trip.
- We coupled the machine to the power supply.
Verb
formal
B2
action
4
Combine or link concepts or effects
To put two things together so they work together or have an effect.
Usage pattern:
to couple [something] with [something]
Synonyms
combine (More general; 'couple' can sound more formal or deliberate.)
Antonyms
isolate (Keep something separate rather than combining it.)
Collocations
couple with success
|couple with effort
Themes
ideas
|planning
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- High demand coupled with low supply has driven prices up.
- Coupled with his experience, her skills made the project a success.
- The policy is coupled with strict enforcement measures.
Learner examples
- High prices coupled with low wages cause problems.
- Her talent coupled with his hard work made them win.
- Bad weather coupled with traffic made me late.
Grammar
Dictionary form
couple
IPA
GB/kˈʌpəl/
US/kˈʌpəl/
Syllables & stress
couple (1 syllable)
Stress on 1st syllable (couple)
Word forms
Noun
- Base: couple
- Plural: couples
Verb
- Base: couple
- 3rd Person Singular: couples
- Present Participle: coupling
- Past: coupled
Word family
Forms
couples
noun
coupling
verb
coupled
verb
Negative and opposite forms
decouple
verb
uncouple
verb
Advanced or less common
couplet
noun
Expressions
couple up
1/kˈʌpəl ˈʌp/
phrasal verb
informal
Form romantic pairs
To start being in a romantic relationship, often at an event where many people find partners.
Examples
- Many guests coupled up during the wedding weekend.
- They coupled up soon after meeting.
coupled with
1/kˈʌpəld wˈɪθ/
fixed phrase
formal
Combined with something else
Together with something else, making an effect.
Examples
- Her determination, coupled with her skill, led to success.
- Low supply, coupled with high demand, caused prices to rise.
quite a couple
1/kwˈaɪt ə kˈʌpəl/
fixed phrase
informal
An impressive pair of people
Two people who are impressive or interesting together.
Examples
- They make quite a couple on stage.
- Everyone agreed they were quite a couple at the party.
a couple of
1/ə kˈʌpəl əv/
fixed phrase
Two or small number of things
Two or a small number of things.
Examples
- We stayed there for a couple of days.
- We stayed there for a couple of nights.
- I have a couple of questions for you.
- Can you give me a couple of minutes?