cup of coffee

noun

The situation where a minor league player comes up to the major league team for a short period of time.

“This Wi-Fi jammer costs a cup of coffee.”

Similar
cup of joecup of tea
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Meanings

nouncup of coffee (plural cups of coffee)

plural cups of coffee

  1. slangball gamesThe situation where a minor league player comes up to the major league team for a short period of time.

    I was up for a cup of coffee once; those were the best six days of my career.

  2. figurativelyOne’s personal preference.

    Since social anthropology is not my cup of coffee, I leave it to the research scholars to discover the true significance of this transformation.

    1963, Southern Economist, volume 2, page 137

    Synonyms: cup of joe

  3. euphemisticAn invitation to have sex.
  4. informalHow cheap something is.

    This Wi-Fi jammer costs a cup of coffee.

  5. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see cup, coffee.

    Synonyms: cup of tea

Synonyms & antonyms

nounOne’s personal preference.

Similar
cup of joe

nounUsed other than figuratively or idiomatically: see cup, coffee.

Similar
cup of tea
Also see
bagcup of joecup of teadishfancyjampredilectionproclivitypropensionpropensityshinesomeone's cup of tea

Origin

Based on the idea that the player was only there long enough to have a cup of coffee.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

cup of coffee. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cup%20of%20coffee

MLA

“cup of coffee.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cup%20of%20coffee. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “cup of coffee,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cup%20of%20coffee.

Source: cup of coffee on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.