the.com/power couple
Two ambitious people dating so neither has to explain their calendar.
means Two partners who are each individually accomplished or influential, and whose relationship amplifies both their public profile and their combined clout.
from A straightforward compound coinage from 'power' + 'couple,' not from any deep etymological root — it surfaces in American media and gossip-column language in the latter 20th century, riding alongside terms like 'power lunch' and 'power tie,' where 'power' got bolted onto everyday nouns to signal status and influence. The phrase took off describing pairs like political spouses or celebrity duos whose combined careers made them a unit of cultural capital, not just two people in love.
- origin
- 1980s business press coined it for dual-career spouses
- red flag
- matching blazers at an event they are not hosting
- math
- their combined LinkedIn headline exceeds 40 words
- tell
- they network even at each other's birthday parties