Cup Of Joe Expression - Meaning & Origin Of Common Phrases

Meaning:

A nickname for a cup of coffee. That’s all there is to it!

Example: To help wake myself up in the morning, I’ll take a shower and then I’ll head to the kitchen to pour myself a piping hot cup of joe.

1. Java2. Brew3. Mud

The Origin Of a ‘Cup of Joe’

After waking up in the morning, millions of people choose to drink a hot (or cold) cup of coffee. Why, though, is this drink referred to as ‘a cup of joe’? Indeed, how did coffee get this nickname?

Well, the origin of this phrase is uncertain. However, there are a few theories. One of them is as follows: Josephus Daniels, who was Secretary of the Navy, banned U.S. Navy ships from serving alcoholic beverages in the year 1914. This ban led to sailors consuming more coffee (among other drinks).

Since Josephus Daniels was responsible for the ban and thus perhaps being partly blamed for the growing intake of coffee, they (the sailors) nicknamed the drink after him, thus it became ‘a cup of joe,’ Joe being short for Josephus. This theory, however, is considered to be unlikely.

A more plausible sounding theory is mentioned at Snopes, where it’s explained that the word ‘joe’ can simply mean ‘an ordinary man.’ For example, perhaps you’ve heard the term ‘an average joe.’ This term is used to describe someone who is thought of as being an everyday, ordinary kind of person. Thus, nicknaming coffee as ‘a cup of joe’ would indicate that it’s a drink for the common man, or the average person.

Example Sentences for ‘Cup of Joe’

Here are some examples of this phrase:

• I like to make myself a steaming hot cup of joe before going to work.

• I’ll definitely be ordering all of my cups of joe from this place because they have the best tasting coffee in town!

Tip: Are you looking for more expressions to read about? If so, we have a list with hundreds of phrases that you can explore, if you want to. To find this list, simply use the menu at the top. Choose a letter from the menu and it will take you to a corresponding list depending on the letter chosen. Or if you prefer, you can use the search bar to type in the phrase you’re looking for.