Etymology

kafkatrap

Kaf·ka·trap
K5A1F4K5A1T1R1A1P3

Today it means: A sophistical rhetorical device in which any denial by an accused person serves as evidence of guilt. Full definition →

First used 2010
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The story

From Kafka + trap, coined by American programmer & open source advocate Eric S. Raymond in 2010 (see the quotation below) in reference to the novel Der Proceß (The Trial, 1925) by the Bohemian author Franz Kafka (1883–1924), in which a man is accused of crimes that are never specified, and every defense is treated as proof of guilt.

First known use, by meaning

  • from 2010 A sophistical rhetorical device in which any denial by an accused person serves as evidence of guilt.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.