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coupling

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cou⋅pling

  [kuhp-ling]
Use coupling in a Sentence
–noun
1. the act of a person or thing that couples.
2. Machinery.
a. a device for joining two rotating shafts semipermanently at their ends so as to transmit torque from one to the other. Compare clutch 1 (def. 12a).
b. a part with an inside thread for connecting two pipes of the same diameter.
c. a fitting at the end of a length of hose into which the end of another such length can be screwed or fitted.
3. Railroads. coupler (def. 3).
4. Electricity.
a. the association of two circuits or systems in such a way that power may be transferred from one to the other.
b. a device or expedient to ensure this.
5. a short length of plumbing pipe having each end threaded on the inside.
6. the part of the body between the tops of the shoulder blades and the tops of the hip joints in a dog, horse, etc.
7. linkage (def. 5).
Origin:
1300–50; ME; see couple, -ing 1
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cou⋅ple

  [kuhp-uhl] noun, verb, -pled, -pling.
–noun
1. two of the same sort considered together; pair.
2. two persons considered as joined together, as a married or engaged pair, lovers, or dance partners: They make a handsome couple.
3. any two persons considered together.
4. Mechanics. a pair of equal, parallel forces acting in opposite directions and tending to produce rotation.
5. Also called couple-close. Carpentry. a pair of rafters connected by a tie beam or collar beam.
6. a leash for holding two hounds together.
7. Fox Hunting. two hounds: 25 hounds or 12 1/2 couple.
–verb (used with object)
8. to fasten, link, or associate together in a pair or pairs.
9. to join; connect.
10. to unite in marriage or in sexual union.
11. Electricity.
a. to join or associate by means of a coupler.
b. to bring (two electric circuits or circuit components) close enough to permit an exchange of electromagnetic energy.
–verb (used without object)
12. to join in a pair; unite.
13. to copulate.
—Idiom
14. a couple of, more than two, but not many, of; a small number of; a few: It will take a couple of days for the package to get there. Also, a couple.
Origin:
1175–1225; (n.) ME < AF c(o)uple, OF cople, cuple < L cōpula a tie, bond (see copula ); (v.) ME couplen < AF co(u)pler, OF copler, cupler < L copulāre (see copulate )

Related forms:
cou⋅ple⋅a⋅ble, adjective

Usage note:
The phrase a couple of has been in standard use for centuries, especially with measurements of time and distance and in referring to amounts of money: They walked a couple of miles in silence. Repairs will probably cost a couple of hundred dollars. The phrase is used in all but the most formal speech and writing. The shortened phrase a couple, without of (The gas station is a couple miles from here), is an Americanism of recent development that occurs chiefly in informal speech or representations of speech. Without a following noun, the phrase is highly informal: Jack shouldn't drive. I think he's had a couple. (Here the noun drinks is omitted.)
In referring to two people, couple, like many collective nouns, may take either a singular or a plural verb. Most commonly, it is construed as a plural: The couple were traveling to Texas. See also collective noun.

cou⋅pler

  [kuhp-ler]
–noun
1. a person or thing that couples or links together.
2. Machinery. a rod or link transmitting force and motion between a rotating part and a rotating or oscillating part.
3. Also called coupling. Railroads. a device for joining pieces of rolling stock.
4. a device in an organ or harpsichord for connecting keys, manuals, or a manual and pedals, so that they are played together when one is played.
5. Electricity. a device for transferring electrical energy from one circuit to another, as a transformer that joins parts of a radio apparatus together by induction.
6. (in color photography) a chemical that reacts with the developer to produce one of the colors in a print or transparency.
Origin:
1545–55; couple + -er 1
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To coupling
cou·ple   (kŭp'əl)   
n.  

  1. Two items of the same kind; a pair.

  2. Something that joins or connects two things together; a link.

  3. (used with a sing. or pl. verb)

    1. Two people united, as by betrothal or marriage.

    2. Two people together.

  4. Informal A few; several: a couple of days.

  5. Physics A pair of forces of equal magnitude acting in parallel but opposite directions, capable of causing rotation but not translation.

v.   cou·pled, cou·pling, cou·ples

v.   tr.

  1. To link together; connect: coupled her refusal with an explanation.

    1. To join as spouses; marry.

    2. To join in sexual union.

  3. Electricity To link (two circuits or currents) as by magnetic induction.

v.   intr.

  1. To form pairs; join.

  2. To unite sexually; copulate.

  3. To join chemically.

adj.   Informal
Two or few: "Every couple years the urge strikes, to . . . haul off to a new site" (Garrison Keillor).

[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin cōpula, bond, pair.]
Usage Note: When used to refer to two people who function socially as a unit, as in a married couple, the word couple may take either a singular or a plural verb, depending on whether the members are considered individually or collectively: The couple were married last week. Only one couple was left on the dance floor. When a pronoun follows, they and their are more common than it and its: The couple decided to spend their (less commonly its) vacation in Florida. Using a singular verb and a plural pronoun, as in The couple wants their children to go to college, is widely considered to be incorrect. Care should be taken that the verb and pronoun agree in number: The couple want their children to go to college. · Although the phrase a couple of has been well established in English since before the Renaissance, modern critics have sometimes maintained that a couple of is too inexact to be appropriate in formal writing. But the inexactitude of a couple of may serve a useful purpose, suggesting that the writer is indifferent to the precise number of items involved. Thus the sentence She lives only a couple of miles away implies not only that the distance is short but that its exact measure is unimportant. This usage should be considered unobjectionable on all levels of style. · The of in the phrase a couple of is often dropped in speech, but this omission is usually considered a mistake, especially in formal contexts. Three-fourths of the Usage Panel finds the sentence I read a couple books over vacation to be unacceptable; however, another 20% of the Panel finds the sentence to be acceptable in informal speech and writing.
cou·pling   (kŭp'lĭng)   
n.  

  1. The act of linking together or forming couples.

  2. The act of uniting sexually.

  3. A device that links or connects.

  4. Electronics Transfer of energy from one circuit to another.

  5. The body part of a four-footed animal that connects the hindquarters to the forequarters.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

couple 
c.1280, from O.Fr. cople "married couple, lovers," from L. copula "tie, connection," from PIE *ko-ap-, from *ko(m)- "together" + *ap- "to take, reach." Meaning broadened 14c. to "any two things." The verb is from c.1340. Poetic couplet, a dim. form, first attested 1580.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: cou·pling
Pronunciation: 'k&p-li[ng], -&-li[ng]
Function: noun
1 : the joint together with its supporting structuresbetween the last lumbar vertebra and the sacrum that joins the hindquarters of a quadruped to the trunk; broadly : the part of the body or the conformation and proportionate length ofthe part of the body that joins the hindquarters to the forequarters
2 : the tendency of linked traits to be inherited together in offspring of a double heterozygote when bothdominant genes occur on one chromosome and both recessive genes occur on the homologous chromosome —compare REPULSION
3 : BIGEMINY
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

coupling cou·pling n.

  1. The act of uniting sexually.

  2. See bigeminal rhythm.

  3. The configuration of two different mutant genes on the same chromosome, leading to the likelihood they will both either be inherited or omitted in the next generation.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Computing Dictionary

coupling programming, hardware
The degree to which components depend on one another. There are two types of coupling, "tight" and "loose". Loose coupling is desirable for good software engineering but tight coupling may be necessary for maximum performance. Coupling is increased when the data exchanged between components becomes larger or more complex.
(1996-08-01)

The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © 1993-2007 Denis Howe
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