Morton's fork

noun

A false dilemma in which contradictory arguments lead to the same (unpleasant) conclusion.

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Meanings

nounMorton's fork (plural Morton's forks)

plural Morton's forks

  1. A false dilemma in which contradictory arguments lead to the same (unpleasant) conclusion.
  2. bridgeA coup in contract bridge that forces an opponent to choose between letting declarer establish extra tricks in the suit led, or losing the opportunity to win any trick in the suit led.

Synonyms & antonyms

Also see
catch-22conundrumdilemmahobson's choicequandarysophie's choice

Origin

Said to have originated with the collecting of taxes by John Morton, Archbishop of Canterbury in the late 15th century, who held that a man living modestly must be saving money and could therefore afford taxes, whereas one living extravagantly was obviously rich and could still afford them.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

Morton's fork. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Morton's%20fork

MLA

“Morton's fork.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Morton's%20fork. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Morton's fork,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Morton's%20fork.

Source: Morton's fork on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.