runcible spoon

noun

A fork-like spoon that has a cutting edge.

Meanings

nounruncible spoon (plural runcible spoons)

plural runcible spoons

  1. A fork-like spoon that has a cutting edge.

    They dined on mince, and slices of quince, Which they ate with a runcible spoon;

    1871, Edward Lear, “Owl & Pussy-Cat”, in Nonsense Songs
    1 more example

    But the Baudelaires accepted their bowls of ceviche, as well as the strange utensils Friday handed them, which were made of wood and looked like a combination of a fork and a spoon. "They're runcible spoons," Friday explained. "We don't have forks or knives in the colony, as they can be used as weapons."

    2006, Lemony Snicket, chapter 4, in The End, page 87

Origin

1871, coined by Edward Lear with no definition, but was applied to the following by 1926.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

runcible spoon. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/runcible%20spoon

MLA

“runcible spoon.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/runcible%20spoon. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

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

Source: runcible spoon on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.