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What really grinds my gears is when people use the words "couple" and "few" in exactly the opposite way they are supposed to be used. How can a couple not be exactly two? Why would you then use few to mean exactly two?

These people are almost always American. At least, I've never encountered someone I know not to be American making this error.

It's part of a wider pattern I've noticed where Americans just say things backwards. Some examples include "let's see if I can't" (meaning let's see if I can), "could care less" (meaning couldn't care less), "me either" (meaning me neither), "irregardlees" (meaning regardless). It's an interesting phenomenon.




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