What does the idiom a Cup of Joe mean?
Cup of Joe: It is an idiomatic phrase that means a cup of coffee. Example: I can’t even function in the morning until I’ve had my first cup of joe. US, idiomatic) A cup of coffee. One’s personal preference.The Trademark: In 1898, Joe Martinson ran Martinson Coffee in New York City. He was a big personality who brewed a unique blend. They called it “cup of Joe” as a marketing ploy. Later, they trademarked the phrase, and it started catching on with all coffee lovers.The term cup of joe might also stem from the phrase the average joe, referring to an everyday person. In this context, cup of joe could be seen as the typical drink of the common man. This interpretation could have gained traction post-World War II, especially as diners became popular in the 1940s and 50s.He was the Secretary of the Navy during WW1 and imposed strict rules for the navy including a blanket ban on all alcohol on all naval bases. Coffee was then the strongest drink one could get and it was derisively referred to as a cup of Josephus later shortened to a cup of joe. But this story is apocryphal at best.
What exactly is a Cup of Joe?
Joe, or, Cup of Joe, an American expression meaning a cup of coffee (the beverage) Founded in New York in 1898 by Joe Martinson, who reportedly had a “bigger-than-life personality,” coffee may have locally been called “Joe’s coffee” or a “cup of joe. As the company grew, “cup of joe” could have expanded from a local nickname to a more widely used term by the 1930s.The phrase “a cup of joe” is a colloquial expression used to refer to a cup of coffee. It is a casual and informal way to ask for or talk about coffee, often implying a simple, everyday beverage. Examples: “I need a cup of joe to wake me up in the morning.Martinson Coffee was Joe’s Coffee The trademarking of cup of joe by Martinson Coffee suggests that the term may have originated from the company’s early days.
What does Cup of Joe mean in slang?
It’s a shortened version of two other slang terms for coffee: java and jamoke. Java + Mocha = Joe Jamoke, which was a common nickname for coffee in the 1930s, was a combination of mocha and java. Coffee drinkers today will still be familiar with mocha and java. Jamoke could have been shortened simply to “joe,” a process that many slang terms go through.Possibly a shortening of cup of jamoke, from java + mocha: this origin was given in a military officer’s manual from 1931, around when the term first appeared. Alternatively, perhaps a use of joe (“fellow, guy”), signifying that coffee was the drink of the common man.