■ noun
1》 two individuals of the same sort considered together.
2》 [treated as sing. or plural ] two people who are married or otherwise closely associated romantically or sexually.
3》 informal an indefinite small number: a ~ of days ago.
4》 Mechanics a pair of equal and parallel forces acting in opposite directions, and tending to cause rotation about an axis perpendicular to the plane containing them.
■ verb
1》 join to form a pair.
↘(often be ~d to/with ) combine.
↘connect (a railway vehicle or a piece of equipment) to another.
2》 have sexual intercourse.
Derivatives
~dom noun
Origin
ME: from OFr. cople (n.), copler (v.), from L. copula (n.), copulare (v.), from co- 'together' + apere 'fasten'; cf. copula and copulate .