What is "coupon"

Coupon \Cou"pon\ (k??"p?n; F. k??`p?n"), n. [F., fr. couper to cut, cut off. See Coppice.]

1. (Com.) A certificate of interest due, printed at the bottom of transferable bonds (state, railroad, etc.), given for a term of years, designed to be cut off and presented for payment when the interest is due; an interest warrant.

2. A section of a ticket, showing the holder to be entitled to some specified accomodation or service, as to a passage over a designated line of travel, a particular seat in a theater, or the like.

3. a ticket or form allowing the bearer to purchase a specific quantity of rationed goods; -- such coupons are typically issued by a governmental agency.

4. a printed form, often distributed as part of an advertisement, entitling the bearer to purchase a specific item of merchandise at a discount; or, a similar form which may be submitted to the issuer to obtain goods or information. Such coupons may be issued by the manufacturer ( manufacturer's coupon) or by a retail establishment; in the latter case they may then be redeemed only at that particular retail store.

1822, "certificate of interest due on a bond" (which could be cut from the bond and presented for payment), from French coupon, literally "piece cut off," from couper "to cut," from coup "a blow" (see coup). Meaning widened to "discount ticket" 1860s by British travel agent Thomas Cook. The specific advertising sense is from 1906.\n\nCOUPON. A financial term, which, together with the practice, is borrowed from France. In the United States, the certificates of State stocks drawing interest are accompanied by coupons, which are small tickets attached to the certificates. At each term when the interest falls due, one of these coupons is cut off (whence the name); and this being presented to the State treasurer or to a bank designated by him, entitles the holder to receive the interest.

[Bartlett]

n. 1 (context obsolete English) A certificate of interest due, printed at the bottom of transferable bonds (state, railroad, etc.), given for a term of years, designed to be cut off and presented for payment when the interest is due; an interest warrant. 2 (context finance English) Any interest payment made or due on a bond, debenture or similar (no longer by a physical coupon). 3 A section of a ticket, showing the holder to be entitled to some specified accommodation or service, as to a passage over a designated line of travel, a particular seat in a theater, a discount, etc. 4 (context Scotland English) The face. 5 A voucher issued by a manufacturer or retailer which offers a discount on a particular product.

1. n. a negotiable certificate that can be detached and redeemed as needed [syn: voucher]

2. a test sample of some substance

In marketing, a coupon is a ticket or document that can be redeemed for a financial discount or rebate when purchasing a product.

Customarily, coupons are issued by manufacturers of consumer packaged goods or by retailers, to be used in retail stores as a part of sales promotions. They are often widely distributed through mail, coupon envelopes, magazines, newspapers, the Internet (social media, email newsletter), directly from the retailer, and mobile devices such as cell phones. Since only price conscious consumers are likely to spend the time to claim the savings, coupons function as a form of price discrimination, enabling retailers to offer a lower price only to those consumers who would otherwise go elsewhere. In addition, coupons can also be targeted selectively to regional markets in which price competition is great.

In government, a coupon is a paper certificate used to administer a benefit or permission.

A coupon payment on a bond is a periodic interest payment that the bondholder receives during the time between when the bond is issued and when it matures.

Coupons are normally described in terms of the coupon rate, which is calculated by adding the total amount of coupons paid per year and dividing by the bond's face value. For example, if a bond has a face value of $1,000 and a coupon rate of 5%, then it pays total coupons of $50 per year. For the typical bond, this will consist of semi-annual payments of $25 each.

The coupon rate is the yield that the bond pays on its issue date; however, this yield can change as the value of the bond changes and thus giving the bond's yield to maturity. All else being equal, bonds having higher coupon rates are therefore more desirable for investors than those having lower coupon rates.

A coupon or test coupon is a printed circuit board (PCB) used to test the quality of a printed wiring board (PWB) fabrication process. Test coupons are fabricated on the same panel as the PWBs, typically at the edges. Coupons are then inspected to ensure proper layer alignment, electrical connectivity, and cross sectioned to inspect internal structures. Coupons can be designed custom for a PWB or selected from a vendor library.

Coupon may refer to the following:

• Coupon, a document exchanged in a retail context to provide a discount on goods or services
• Coupon (bond), in finance, with respect to bonds, a coupon rate is the interest rate that the issuer pays to the bond holders
• Love coupons and love coupon books are popular gifts on Valentine's Day and other anniversary days
• Coupon (materials science), a small piece of material used for testing or further processing in manufacturing and materials science
• Coupon (PWB), a printed circuit card used to test the quality of a printed wiring board (PWB) fabrication process.
• Coupon, Pennsylvania (place), a small, unincorporated community in Pennsylvania
• Football pools promoters in the United Kingdom use this name when referring to the paper grids which gamblers fill in to bet on the results of football fixtures
• Ukrainian karbovanets, the former Ukrainian currency
• Coupon busters, these women's multi-style shoes fashionable in post-WWII England featured as a plot point in Foyle's War Series Seven, episode 2 ("The Cage")