Thread: "Couple" without a preposition?
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Old 12-12-2011, 08:58 AM   #18
WT Sharpe
Bah, humbug!
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Quote:
Originally Posted by HarryT View Post
In British English, it is mandatory to have the preposition "of" after the word "couple", in its meaning "two of something".

Eg, "A couple of questions", "A couple of kg of apples".

I've noticed many Americans on this forum omit the word "of" and say, for example, "I have a couple questions". This just looks wrong to me . Is this an acceptable practice in US English?
I think it started with beer commercials, where some clown would utter phrases such as "We're talking smooth. We're talking taste. We're talking beer!" No, you're not. You're talking sans prepositions, and it sounds juvenile. But what do I know? I'm still haven't reconciled myself to the fact that 'read' is now used as a noun.
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