a couple dozen vs a couple of dozen

Both 'a couple dozen' and 'a couple of dozen' are commonly used phrases in English. They are interchangeable and convey the same meaning. The choice between the two is a matter of personal preference.

Last updated: April 11, 2024 • 1059 views

a couple dozen

This phrase is correct and commonly used in English.

This phrase is used to indicate an approximate number of around twenty-four items. It is informal and often used in spoken English.

Examples:

I need a couple dozen eggs for the recipe.
He bought a couple dozen roses for his girlfriend.
She has a couple dozen books on her shelf.
Could you grab a couple dozen cookies for the party?
They sold a couple dozen tickets for the event.

Show examples from the web [+]

... a couple wagons for hire — Garrison Keillor It is most frequently used with periods of time a couple weeks and numbers. a couple hundred a couple dozen ...
Explanation of the English phrase "a couple dozen": "A dozen" means 12. Certain things come in containers of 12, like eggs and doughnuts: Do you want a ...
Jun 27, 2012 ... ... Justice Department, told reporters Wednesday that “a couple dozen” other Democrats could join with Republicans because of NRA pressure.
English lesson from PhraseMix.com: "We've only got a couple dozen more to go." - You're helping your friend mail her wedding invitations.
Mar 17, 2022 ... Madison police were called to a fight involving roughly “a couple dozen” students Wednesday afternoon near East High School, officials said.
May 20, 2022 ... Canada's chief public health officer said Friday provincial health authorities are investigating "a couple dozen" people who may be infected ...

Alternatives:

a couple of dozen
a few dozen
several dozen
around two dozen
roughly twenty-four

a couple of dozen

This phrase is correct and commonly used in English.

This phrase is also used to indicate an approximate number of around twenty-four items. It is informal and often used in spoken English.

Examples:

She needs a couple of dozen cupcakes for the party.
There are a couple of dozen people waiting in line.
He has a couple of dozen CDs in his collection.
Could you bring a couple of dozen napkins for the picnic?
They sold a couple of dozen t-shirts at the concert.

Show examples from the web [+]

Jun 22, 2016 ... Oddly, neither “a couple dozen eggs” NOR “a couple of dozen eggs” sounds quite idiomatic to my brain… they are BOTH awkward, ...
a couple of dozen students (= approximately 24 students); a couple of hundred years ago (= approximately two hundred years ago). A couple of cannot be used ...
Dec 27, 2021 ... UHP responds to a couple of dozen crashes due to snow squall ... (ABC4) – The Utah Highway Patrol has been responding to dozens of crashes that ...
When a couple of dozen Rolls-Royces purr up to a club meeting. July 30, 1982. By Charles E. Dole Automotive editor of The Christian Science Monitor.
49 Likes, 2 Comments - Ferndale Pride (@ferndalepride) on Instagram: “Only a couple of dozen booths remain. Don't wait until it's too late. Hope over to…”

Alternatives:

a couple dozen
a few dozen
several dozen
around two dozen
roughly twenty-four

What Our Customers Are Saying

Our customers love us! We have an average rating of 4.79 stars based on 283,125 votes.
Also check out our 2,100+ reviews on TrustPilot (4.9).

"Amazing! I like that the editors are REAL people and not A.I., like some use. The editors actually see clients as real people and not just apart of their job, and it shows. 💖"
moggie April 2025
"TextRanch has been a great help to me, especially at work because I often email my boss."
Jhey April 2025
"Thank you!"
Sachi Nakama July 2024
"I have literally been through chat, PI, claude, bard and bing and I got conflicting answers! Thank you! Human intelligence reigns!"
Retha July 2024
"Faster than AI"
CYNTHIA December 2023
"This was very helpful and I personally think this site is the best."
Kaden October 2023
"It was extremely thorough and very helpful!"
imperialelisa October 2023
"7 years without any disappointment. Always 100% satisfied. You guys are the best in the world at what you do. Thank you so much :)"
Zubair Alam October 2023
"In a world of text messages and online communication, this is great to have as a live tool. Thank you."
Selena October 2023
"Without textranch I would be stuck!"
宏祐 October 2023
"Accuracy and fast response. Personal comments from editor. Thank you."
Clh September 2023
"I wasn't aware of this service, it's fascinating and more reliable than standard IA tools available on the internet"
Arturo September 2023
"The fact that you can get reliable fast feedback on your texts."
Vinicius Antonio August 2023
"you guys are better than grammarly i'm being honest here"
ordinary July 2023
"OMG! This is really good than any other text correction tools I've used so far. Highly recommend this."
Vehan July 2023
"Very fast and accurate. thank you."
mojtaba July 2023
"I love this app because it's help to writing skills all of students ♥️"
Tarisini July 2023
"This was exactly the mistake I was looking for, the wording dind´t sound right at first. Better than grammarly!"
Ente July 2023
"The immediate help that I received was reassuring and very satisfactory. Thanks."
priiiyanshuu July 2023
"this helps A LOT for my studies."
kathnunez02 June 2023
"Woow!! I would never have expected such precision! Thank you soooo much!!"
Berta June 2023
"Real Time Editor and not AI. Many Thanks."
Priya June 2023
"The very first thing excites me about Textranch is how much your editors care."
sepideh June 2023
"The fact that texts are checked by human editors rather than by AI, etc. I appreciate this!"
Анна June 2023