I’ll be telling you more about how I used to be “The Coupon Queen”, but first…let’s have a friendly little debate shall we?
I say that the word “coupon” is pronounced KYOOPON.
And I think I’m right.
But my husband says that the word is pronounced KOOPON.
And he thinks he’s right.
What with all the tragedy and hurt in the world, this is one issue that we apparently still feel is important enough to take up a portion of our time, energy and conversation.
I finally looked the word up in the dictionary, and turns out…we’re both right. Both pronunciations are in there. Huh.
No matter, it’s continued to be a running “argument” for years. The kids get a huge kick out of listening to it.
Matt (surprised to see an item we wouldn’t normally buy): “Hey, that looks good. Did you have a KOOPON for it?”
Laura: “No I didn’t, but I did have a KYOOPON. Got us a pretty good deal.”
I am of the humble opinion that if I’m the one taking the time and making the effort to use the KYOOPON and saving us money with the KYOOPONS, then I am a little bit more right than he is.
Regardless of who is more right (that would be me), I don’t know WHAT happened to me this week, but TWICE I said it wrong. Wrong I tell you.
We had loved trying the V8 V-Fusion a few weeks ago and I found a KYOOPON for another bottle. So I splurged, used the KYOOPON and bought us another variety to try.
The kids were so excited, Matt was so excited, I was so excited.
I poured a little into six glasses, one for each of us and we had it with our meal. I happily shared that I’d bought the treat because I had a KOOPON.
Asa (our oldest son, and the one who has the gift to ALWAYS catch mistakes) (and point them out) said, “Mom! Did you just say KOOPON?”
“No, of course not! I would never say that. I said KYOOPON. I bought it because I had a KYOOPON,” I said firmly.
And then Justus (who often appears not to be listening, but usually IS listening) piped in with, “No Mom. I’m pretty sure you really said KOOPON.”
Matt was just sitting there with a smirk. “Yes, as a matter of fact, you did say KOOPON. Finally you said it right.”
I shook my head (and maybe threw a pea at someone who was smirking) and we carried on with our meal.
A few minutes later, Elias randomly asked if we could have bacon sandwiches soon. I said, “Sure…I actually got some turkey bacon at the store yesterday with a KOOPON.”
And everyone burst out laughing.
I don’t really think bacon sandwiches are that funny, but whatever.
“Mom, you said KOOPON again.” (Asa, of course)
“For REAL? I said KOOPON?”
Matt (same smirky grin): “Yep. KOO-PON.”
Bah. Just another example of me saying something and my family not hearing me correctly. Story of my life.
Or, maybe it is in fact that I’ve been around enough people who pronounce it KOOPON that I’m starting to say it wrong now. I’ve got to get my act together.
So…your turn to chime in. Which way do you say “coupon”?
KOOPON or KYOOPON?
(If you pronounce it KOOPON, I promise I won’t throw peas at you.)
Since I abbreviate it on my shopping lists as Q, you can guess which one I use. The right one =) I usually mark which items I have a Q for so I can be sure to pull them out to use at checkout.
KOOPON
KOOPON, but interestingly enough I also abbreviate it with Q. So I guess I’m right all around!
Sorry Laura, KOOPON is right. :)
Yeah, Laura, you’re right. Kyoopon. Don’t worry if you occasionally slip and use the wrong pronunciation. All that influence around you is bound to trip you up a time or two…
When I lived on the East Coast (where I grew up), I pronounced it KYOOPON. Now that I’ve lived in the West for awhile (11 years), I say KOOPON. Weird. I never really thought about it before…
Funny….I’ve never thought about it but I actually say it both ways. Just depends! Thanks ’cause now I’ll be paranoid! :)
That was funny! I actually had to think about this one for a moment. I say both…not really sure what determines it, sometimes it comes out kyoopon and other times koopon. good to know they are actually both correct.
I say KYOOPON just like all the rest of the intelligent people of this world. HAH! I loved this post… so funny!
Laura, I love you, but you are wrong! :-) It’s KOOPON all the way!
Actually, I was thinking about it – maybe it’s a regional thing? Like Californians/West Coasters say KOOPON, while midwesterners say KYOOPON? Sorta like the whole soda versus pop thing? (Hey, there’s a Saturday question for you – did you do that one yet?)
Hmm, I didn’t know that there was another way to say KOOPON!! :)
koopon down here in the deep south.
I grew up hearing my mom say kyoopon, but for some weird reason, the first time (elementary school, I think) I heard someone else say KOOPON, I decided they were right and my mom was wrong. Some years later, I got the dictionary to “prove” it to her, only to be disappointed as you were!
Wow! I think this same situation has occurred in my house (minus the boys to chime in!). I am a firm believer of KYOOPON, and Lloyd always pokes fun at me and insists it is KOOPON (I also apparently over-enunciate the ‘t’ sound in button), but I have also slipped a time or two. Perhaps we should start pronouncing it COWPON, using the sound from words like south and mouth. ;)
Midwestern KYOOPON user!
Kyoopon! Althoough my husband, like yours, insists that it’s koopon. And we only grew up about 20 miles from each other so I don’t know if it’s regional or not!
KOOPON. If it was supposed to be KYOOPON it would have had a Y in it somewhere! I don’t think it’s a regional thing, because I live in the midwest too. Perhaps it’s just the way we grew up hearing it? Another questions: ACROSS or ACROST? Why do people put a T in the word ACROSS?
I’m with you…kyoopon.
Now, for the discussion about onvelope versus envelope. What is up with that pronunciation? “Onvelope” sounds so French.
Tomato, Tomahto, there are so many:)
I never really thought about it, but I guess I say koopon. Thanks for asking.
This post seriously makes me laugh! My husband and I have had THE SAME running argument for years as well. Except I say KOOPON and he says KYOOPON. But, hey, if this is the extent of our arguements…I’m a happy lady! :)
I’m not sure whether it’s regional or not, but I, like you, pronounce it cue-pon and my husband says coooo-pon (like a dove or something). He’s from Chicago and I’m from the south. He says a lot of things strangely, but I love him anyway.
Down here in Texas, we say KOOPON. Here’s a twist for the commenter who mentioned the soda vs pop debate: We say “Coke” (regardless of variety or brand). :-) Example: “You wanna stop and get a coke?” “Sure, whaddya want?” “I think I’ll have a Dr. Pepper.”
Food for thought. :-)
Me too! All carbonated beverages are coke! Pop or soda is not used here in Arkansas!
I’m with Krista. It’s KOOPON here in Houston… at least at my house.
I say Koopon, which would seem closer to the French root word Couper (pronounced Koo Pay), but as long as you’re saving money, that’s what really counts, right?
KYOOPON here in the deep south for me :)
(But I did an informal poll and hubby says KOOPON – who knew??) we’ve been to California once for a week so I don’t think he picked it up there. I’ve never even been to the midwest but hubby has visited a couple of times. What a funny debate. Loved the story!
And, what about Car-a-mel vs. Care-a-mel? That definitely seems to be a regional thing.
How FUNNY! Two nights ago when I was mentioning this post idea to my husband, he said, “And what about Car-a-mel vs. Care-a-mel?” It’s almost a pet peeve of his when people say it “car-mel”. There’s an A in the middle, he says. Of COURSE it’s Care-a-mel.
Oh – I had forgotton the no “a” option :) — kind of like the city in California.
Unlike KYOOPON, this is the word that trips me up – most often it’s Care-a-mel, but sometimes I say Car-a-mel . If I think too hard about it I can’t remember which way to say it!! At least I always put the “a” in the middle :)
Here’s one for your kids — how do you pronounce the capital of Kentucky … Lou-ee-ville or Lou-is-ville? (Neither!! It’s Frankfort!!) :)
KYOOPON for sure!
I say both. My mom used to call them KYOOPs. I think I lean toward KyOOPON… just a sligh “y” sound in there… probably a regional thing? I think both ways are A-OK as long as you are saving money!
Wow. I think I say it both ways. Don’t know why. Throw a half pea at me. :-)
KOOPON! But I also say Coke instead of pop or soda (I am from the South).
Ducking in case more peas fly :o) I say koopon too.
Amy
I say kyoopon, and so does my husband. but we have a similar ongoing argument about what the bubbly beverages are called (I say “soda” and he says “pop”) and also what you do to your body when you have an itch (I say you “scratch” an itch and he says you “itch” it) …yeah, his reasoning is very faulty on that argument in particular!
This is funny! Sorry to have to side with the hubs, but i do say Koo-pon.
KYOOPON. I’m actually thrilled to realize my husband and I agree on this one! We grew up about 30 miles apart(in Illinois), and we pronounce lots of words differently.
I think I call it both ways. I’ve never thought about it before, but I think I do. :) How odd. How funny. Now I’m gonna have to start listening to myself and see what I say. :)
the definitive answer comes from the French word “couper” (koo-pay) which means “to cut.” So a “coupon” (koo-pon) is a small cutting, remnant, or ticket.
I say KOOPON and I use a “C” next to the items on my shopping list. VERY funny post!
I say them both but my husband INSISTS that it is Koopon! I loved this post and can’t wait to hear about your grocery shopping experiences in Colorado Springs :) Everytime I would come home from Safeway, Lucas would ask me “Ok- so how much did they pay you to take all this stuff?” He, he! Boy, do I miss Safeway!!!!!
So, I’m a little slow and just realized that I hadn’t seen any posts from you in a while in my reader…so when I clicked over, I saw that you had changed your web address…I have some catching up to do!! =)
We say KYOOPON at our house but you could be like comedian Ron White and say KOOPUN:)
Koopon. Definitely.
Maybe?
I don’t know.
I *do* know that I grew up saying KYOOPON, but switched to KOOPON sometime in the past few years.
I also switched how I say “neither”. I used to say “neether”, but now I say it the other way (and don’t make me try to come up with a spelling that shows how I say it…I can’t figure it out- lol).
Great story!!
Here in Australia I have never heard anyone pronounce it as kyoopon. Weird. (to my ears). Thanks for the chuckle ;)
Koopon. West Coast girl here ;)
I’m w/Matt, KOOPON. I can’t even say KYOOPON. And I’m in PA. We say Pepsi or Coke (or drink of choice) Hoagies/subs/heroes are for sandwiches on a big roll!
Wow, I’m a total freak. I say KEW-PON. What does that mean???
Kyoopon! My hubby and I argue over how to pronounce “Burger”, he says it like “booger” as in booger in your nose. I insist it is “berger” cuz who wants to eat a ham-booger? The worst part is our kids are starting to pronounce it like him! Aaaahhhh!
So funny! In the past I said Q-PON not thinking anything about it until my highly intelligent 8 year old son informed me that it was KOO-PON. Now everytime I say it wrong he corrects me. It has really helped me to see how hard it is to change behavior and I am even more patient when my children need some changing in their behavior!
Sorry Laura, I’m a KOOPON girl!
I say Q-pon. My husband’s family says it koopon. He’s from Illinois and I’m from Mississippi.
Where do you come up with this stuff?! Hubby, daughter and I say KYOOPON, but our son says koopon – how did that happen?!
I say KOOPON. I used to say KYOOPON but was corrected publicly by a public speaking professor in college. I was so embarrassed, I’m scared to say KYOOPON now. Family members say KYOOPON and I cringe every time I hear it. LOL!!!
I am glad to know that both are right. I would rather say KYOOPON. :-)
In my region… (central PA) they say depot as dep-po. Growing up it was dee-po (I lived in NE PA). We also said caramel as car-mal. Now to be funny, I’ll say cara-mel.
Kinda like w/creek. Some say crick, some say creek!
I’m from Arkansas and have always said KYOOPON. My husband is from California and insists that it’s KOOPON.
Another one that drives me crazy is people saying “PEE-can” instead of “Pe-Cahn”. Who in the world would want a pee-can pie anyways? That’s craziness! :)
That sounds a lot like me. The Weigh Down diet was the first book I read on diet and nutrition, and it really changed my life. It brought to light that obsession with food and eating was a sin, and I struggled with that for some time after (still do sometimes) until the Spirit set me free from the crippling power of that sin in my life, but it was one of the early steps on a long and ongoing journey toward honoring God by taking care of this temple of His.
I’m a “KYOOPON” girl too. :)
I love this post! I’m constantly thinking to myself “They’re saying it wrong!” when I hear people say KOOPON. I’ve always said “KYOOPON”. Anything else just sounds weird :)
why do certain people say it one way and others another. does it depend on where you live/grew up? How old you are?