Heat can be transferred by three methods: Convection, conduction and radiation.

Convection is the main way heat flows through liquids and gases therefore in terms of
cooling a cup, convection is one method the heat is transferred. However, the cooling of
the hot coffee cup also involves conduction where the movement of the heat is along a
gradient within a solid and is then followed by convection of the hot air associated with
the outer surface of the cup away from the surface from it. (Marzzacco 2019). As
convection is the way heat moves through liquids and gases the hot molecules in the
coffee cup would arise and reach the inner surface of the cup where conduction would
then take place and the molecules would end up being lost as thermal energy.