Size Semantics

I'm annoyed with coffee shops—any place that serves beverages, really—that have Medium and Large as their drink sizes but no Small.

Having a Medium size implies a larger and a smaller size. Medium falls between two extremes. When Medium is the smaller size out of two sizes, it is properly called Small. Small and Large. Medium and Large does not make sense.

I know there's more to this than semantics. Especially in the U.S., we have distorted portion sizes. We don't know what's appropriate and in some cases, a Small is not big enough for the stereotypical American appetite. Cafés drop the Small size. Then Medium becomes the new Small but does not change size or name. The incorrect term sticks.

If we can't have a logical system for Small, Medium, and Large drinks, we should use liquid measurements. Small becomes 8 ounces, Mediums becomes 12 ounces, and Large becomes 16 ounces. (Or 12, 16, and 20, if you want to scale the sizes a little larger.) Order by the measurement, and you always know how much coffee you're getting. Simple.