No, I didn’t encounter coo versus coup myself. I’m mostly exploring this rare set of words…rare in that I’ve almost never encountered either of them in my reading…because it was on my list.
Yep, I’ve got a list and I’m checking it twice, lol. Seriously, I had wanted to include coo when I was writing “Co-op vs Coop vs Coup vs Coupe/Coupé“, but I can’t force myself to go past four words at a time. Even four is a bit much in terms of the width of space on a page! It’d end up being two words per line! Yeah, it’s an exaggeration, but you get the idea.
On to coo versus coup, which are both heterographs (a subset of homophone), so you need to know their definitions.
One very definite difference between the two is that coo is a soft, gentle sound while coup is more on the violent side.
So, coo coo ka choo and full steam ahead…*grin*…
You may also want to explore “Co-op vs Coop vs Coup vs Coupe/Coupé“.
Word Confusions…
…started as my way of dealing with a professional frustration with properly spelled words that were out of context in manuscripts I was editing as well as books I was reviewing. It evolved into a sharing of information with y’all. I’m hoping you’ll share with us words that have been a bête noir for you from either end.
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| Coo | Coup |
|---|---|
| Credit to: Apple Dictionary.com; Dictionary.com: coo; Lexico.com: coo | |
Coo, Coo by Sultry is under the CC BY 2.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons. Uploaded by Pauk. |
Sudan Military Coup courtesy of Agence France-Presse and Middle East Eye was uploaded by Mr James Dimsey and is under the CC0 1.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons. |
| Part of Grammar: | |
| Abbreviation 1, 2; Interjection 3; Noun 4; Verb 4, intransitive & transitive
Plural for the noun and third person present verb: coos |
Noun
Plural: coups |
| Abbreviation: [CoO] Cost of ownership 1 [COO] A chief operations (operating) officer who is a senior executive responsible for managing the day-to-day operations of a company or other institution 2 Interjection: Noun: Verb, intransitive:
To murmur or talk fondly or amorously Verb, transitive: |
[Also coup d’état] A sudden, violent, and illegal seizure of power from a government
A notable or successful stroke or move
[Historical; among North American Indians] An act of touching an armed enemy in battle as a deed of bravery, or an act of first touching an item of the enemy’s in order to claim it A contusion caused by contact of the brain with the skull at the point of trauma |
| Examples: | |
| Abbreviation: The CoO includes the purchase price of a particular asset, plus operating costs over the asset’s lifespan and a great way of assessing the long-term value of a purchase to someone. For some time there had been rumors that he would be stepping down from his position as COO. Interjection: “Coo!” she said, having returned to terra firma and taken aboard a spot of breath. “You gave me a start, sir!” (Wodehouse). Coo! So he is. Noun: Wainwright isn’t just a sweet songbird; she’s the black dove with the weather-beaten coo and has the ability to howl like a seasoned blues singer. In the eaves, doves’ coos beat the intro over and over. Verb, intransitive: The doves are cooing and wooing and calling for love. “I knew I could count on you,” she cooed. I cruised the room, cooing at toddlers. Verb, transitive: “As Norah Jones coos sweet nothings on the soundtrack, the happy couple—played by Paul Rudd and Amy Poehler—canoodle through a Manhattan montage, making pasta for two, swimming through a pile of autumn leaves, and horsing around at a fruit stand” (Dowd). |
On 6 January 2021, there was an attempted coup in Washington D.C.
The history of Africa is one of coup after coup after coup. Two of the greatest World War II intelligence coups were achieved by the Russians. There are four primary coups: Scissors coup, Trump coup, Devil’s coup, or Vienna coup. Touching one’s enemy with a coup stick was considered an act of bravery. “You can see by the angle that this coup injury was made by a bat,” the medical examiner said. |
| Derivatives: | |
| Adverb: cooingly Noun: cooer |
|
| History of the Word: | |
|
Late 18th century, from the French, which is from the medieval Latin colpus meaning blow. |
C’mon, get it out of your system, bitch, whine, moan…which words are your pet peeves? Also, please note that I try to be as accurate as I can, but mistakes happen or I miss something. Email me if you find errors, so I can fix them…and we’ll all benefit!
Satisfy your curiosity about other Word Confusions on its homepage or more generally explore the index of self-editing posts. You may also want to more generally explore the index of self-editing posts. You may also want to explore Formatting Tips, Grammar Explanations, Linguistics, Publishing Tips, the Properly Punctuated, Writing Ideas and Resources, and Working Your Website.
Resources for Coo versus Coup
Dowd, A.A. “Paul Rudd and Amy Poehler Spoof Rom-com Clichés in They Came Together.” The A.V. Club. Wikipedia.com. 27 Nov 2017. Web. 8 May 2021.
“Interjection.” Wikipedia.com. 14 Apr 2021. Web. 8 May 2021. <https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/coo#Interjection>.
Scott, Walter. The Lady of the Lake. London: Longman, Hurst, Rees, and Orme, and William Miller, 1810. OCLC 6632529, Canto 3, Stanza 2, p 99.
Wodehouse, P.G. Jeeves in the Offing. Ch 7. London: Herbert Jenkins, 1960. OCLC 1227855:
Pinterest Photo Credits:
Contrecoup by Patrick J. Lynch is under the CC-BY 2.5 license, via Wikimedia Commons. War Bonnet and Coup Sticks… by Tim Evanson is under the CC BY-SA 2.0 license, via Flickr and was brutally erased in Photoshop to retain only one of the coup sticks.
