In a comment on one of the posts I noticed the phrase “clipping coupons” and it amused me just how much the phrase has changed over the years. Now it refers to someone who clips coupons from a flyer or newspaper to get discounts on products. It’s a sign of frugality. But that wasn’t always its meaning.
Once upon a time when you bought a bearer bond the actual bond certificate came with “coupons” attached. See the illustration above, a bond with coupons attached. To redeem the biannual interest payments, you’d clip the appropriate coupon from the bond and take it into an authorized agent bank. That was something associated with the idle rich.
Making your living by clipping coupons has gone from a derisive comment about the rich to a remark about the frugal poor or middle class in just under a century.
“……clipping coupons has gone from …………….. a remark about the frugal poor or middle class…….â€
Or about my wife.
We have an app for that.