In recent years, several countries have experienced soft coups that eroded democratic institutions without firing a shot.

Many historians argue that the prime minister's forced resignation, orchestrated through courts and parliament rather than troops, amounted to a soft coup.

The general refused to send his men through the gorge, calling it a coupe-gorge where any troops trapped would be forced to surrender or be cut to pieces.

The old town's narrow alleys had become notorious coupe-gorges after dark.

He restored a deuce coupe that gleamed at the car show, turning heads wherever it went.

The president's declaration of emergency and dismissal of parliament was widely condemned as a self-coup.

Several countries in the region experienced self-coups that concentrated power in the executive branch.

The historian's book analyzed the colonels' coups that reshaped the nation's political landscape.

The historians debated the causes and consequences of the generals' coups in the region throughout the twentieth century.

Meeting her in Paris felt like a coup de foudre, changing the course of his life overnight.