The cup is a unit of measurement for volume, used in cooking to measure bulk foods, such as chopped vegetables (dry measurement), and liquids (fluid measurement). It is in common use in many countries , especially those that were part of the British Empire, including the United States and most members of the Commonwealth of Nations, and nations that were influenced by them, such as Japan. This cup is not commonly used in the United Kingdom or the rest of Europe, however an informal cup referring to the volume of an average coffee cup (and thus noticeably smaller than the U.S. cup) is frequently used in recipes in other countries such as Germany.