ˈkəpliŋ, -lēŋ noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English, from gerund of couplen to couple, join
1. : the act of bringing together : pairing : a coming together ; specifically : sexual union
2. : a device that serves to couple or connect the ends of adjacent parts or objects
a belt coupling
a car coupling
a shaft coupling
a pipe coupling
— see fluid coupling
3. : the joint together with its supporting structures between the last lumbar vertebra and the sacrum that joins the hindquarters to the trunk ; broadly : the part of the body or the conformation and proportionate length of the part of the body that joins the hindquarters to the forequarters — used of a horse, dog, or other mammalian quadruped
4.
a. : an arrangement of two electric circuits by means of which the electromotive force and current in one circuit are influenced by the electromotive force and current in the other
b. : an interaction between two systems or parts of the same system, especially between parts of atomic or molecular systems (as the mutual magnetic influence of two spinning electrons)
5. : the tendency of certain genetic characters to be inherited together presumably because of linkage of the dominant genes that control their expression — compare repulsion