Why is it that Americans say "a couple things" rather than "a couple of things"?

You are listening to the wrong Americans. No one I hang around with says anything but “a couple of things.”

—“Two things” is OK
—“Two things” = “A couple”
— Thus “A couple things” is OK

Discuss.

@gailcalled Obviously! Perhaps I just notice the incorrect usage and ignore the other because there is nothing that arouses my annoyance

Expressions vary regionally, as do accents, customs, and many other cultural things. There is hardly anything that is true of all Americans.

@jaytkay, false analogy. “Two” is an adjective and can modify the noun “things.” “A couple” is a noun phrase. A noun does not modify a noun. That’s why you need “of” to make a prepositional phrase with “things.”

@Jeruba I guess my question does put all Americans into one box, apologies for that. But it is an aberration :) I have been aware of for a long time and thought Fluther was the perfect place to have my question answered.

I always say “a couple a things”. with a soft A sound replacing the of sound. I am from ohio/great lakes.

Two people in love are a couple.

Shift to “several things” if you want. My ex and I used to argue; he said that “a couple of things” always meant “two only” and I said that the expression was synonymous with “several.”

Because the idea is portrayed just as well, and it saves a whole syllable’s worth of time.
I switch between using and not using the word “of”.

I either say it how @LKidKyle1985 mentioned, or without the “of” at all.
I don’t usually think about it, though.

So how is it different than say ’ a few things’ ? Interesting question.

I usually say ’ a couple-ah things’. If I’m being formal then I won’t use the phrase.

It’s just fluidity of language. You will also hear Spanish speakers say “m’ijo” instead of “mi hijo.” People know what we say when we say it, so there’s no reason to change it.

Guilty! I only say this in a specific circumstance. If I want to talk to someone close to me (generally on the phone) about a few subjects quickly, I’ll actually even drop the ‘A’. I start the conversation with “Couple things”, and then go into my quick talk, like bullet points. I have no clue why I do this.

Example:
“Couple things: Your dad called, and needs you to call him back. Don’t forget to pick up kitty litter. Also, did you go to the bank?”

In all other circumstances, I say “a couple of things”.

Because we grew up reading A Cat in The Hat.
You know, a couple things? Thing 1 and Thing 2?

I don’t usually say “of”. I most often just say “a couple things”, but I do believe I say both. It’s not incorrect; it’s just another version. It’s all about descriptive grammar, not prescriptive grammar.

Obviously, the “of” phrase was the original. As in, the two things are a couple, like a married couple. It just got shortened to where the “of” was omitted and the word “couple” has become an adjective rather than a noun.

We say both. Why is it that some people make sweeping generalizations after only a limited sampling?

My sister and her husband had a discussion about “of”. He laughed when she would say “smell of this”. His opinion was that “smell this” was proper. I don’t know which is right but I would say I’m going to the store to pick up a couple of things. If someone asked me what I bought I would say a couple things.

Both usages are correct says Dictionary.com

”—Idiom
14. a couple of, more than two, but not many, of; a small number of; a few: It will take a couple of days for the package to get there. Also, a couple.”

Similarly, I think “dozen” is also a noun, meaning an amount of 12. However, almost no one says “a dozen of eggs”.

Followup from that same Dictionary.com entry:

”Usage note:
The phrase a couple of has been in standard use for centuries, especially with measurements of time and distance and in referring to amounts of money: They walked a couple of miles in silence. Repairs will probably cost a couple of hundred dollars. The phrase is used in all but the most formal speech and writing. The shortened phrase a couple, without of (The gas station is a couple miles from here), is an Americanism of recent development that occurs chiefly in informal speech or representations of speech.”

I hate that myself. We’re cutting “of” outta (another bane of my existence) everyday language and it drives me CRAZY! Of OF OF OF OF! It’s such a small word! Just use it!

I should have known my question would receive such varying responses. I guess it’s yet another example of how easy it is to slip into thinking that the way WE do things is the right way to do things ie the only way to do things. Maybe I’m mixing in the wrong circles but I have never heard anybody say “a couple things” in New Zealand. I’m sure there are numerous New Zealandisms in use here that Americans would find very strange as well I just can’t think of an example right now! Anyway, I think my question has been thoroughly answered for me: some say it, some don’t, some have their own variations, some think it is ok, some don’t, some couples argue over which way is right, some back their answer up with a literary reference, some answer from their own experience, some say the questioner is generalising (politely and not so politely), some are just plain humourous, some are just plain irritated hope I didn’t leave anyone out. GA for you all

“Of, of of.” It is a small word; just don’t use it in the sentence,“I could have whatever.”

“At” is a small word, also, but not when you’re pointing out where something is.

“Where it’s at,” is vernacular and used a lot in speech, but sounds folksy and should never appear in written text.

I should add to watch for the “it was too big of a production” statements also. Leave that “of” out. It was too big a production; I made too big a fuss about it, etc.

@gailcalled That’s another one I have noticed, in fact I just read it on Fluther a few moments ago.I wish somebody who has visited New Zealand or knows a New Zealander, would tell me the things that we say

Slang is not the official language.

@gailcalled, that’s one of those that really make me want to shriek. But I don’t. I say nothing. I could get into heaven just on the credits I’ve earned from exercising that restraint.

A few decades ago you didn’t hear that aberration, and now it is everywhere, in speech and in writing. “It’s not that big of a deal.” <shudder> I can hardly bear to write it. Say It’s not that big a deal. It’s not a big deal. It’s not a deal [that is] that big. “Big” is an adjective. It doesn’t need a preposition to join it to its noun.

Error normally moves in the direction of simplicity: omission, elision, reduction, etc. Why add a word that has no need to be there? And more: why is it the corruptions that catch on and not the well-formed expressions?

@Jeruba : I guess because it’s our bad (or good?).