| Wordsmith.org | The Magic of Words |
May 18, 2010
This week's themeWhose what?
This week's words
Ockham's razor
Morton's fork
Make a gift that ...
keeps on giving, all year long
A gift subscription of AWAD
It takes less than a minute.
Discuss
Feedback
RSS/XML 
A.Word.A.Day
with Anu GargMorton's fork
PRONUNCIATION:
(MOR-tuhns fork) 
MEANING:
noun: A situation involving choice between two equally undesirable outcomes. ETYMOLOGY:
After John Morton (c. 1420-1500), archbishop of Canterbury, who was tax collector for the English King Henry VII. To him is attributed Morton's fork, a neat argument for collecting taxes from everyone: those living in luxury obviously had money to spare and those living frugally must have accumulated savings to be able to pay. USAGE:
"[Japan's political elites] face a Morton's fork between being ignored or being seen as a problem to which there is little solution."Michael Auslin; Japan Dissing; The Wall Street Journal (New York); Apr 22, 2010.
A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
Ethiopians imagine their gods as black and snub-nosed; Thracians blue-eyed and red-haired. But if horses or lions had hands, or could draw and fashion works as men do, horses would draw the gods shaped like horses and lions like lions, making the gods resemble themselves. -Xenophanes, philosopher and poet (c.570-475 BCE) This newsletter is made possible in part by these sponsors:
| Great Courses by Top US Professors The most engaging professors from America's top universities in your home | Angie's List Thousands of unbiased ratings and reviews on service companies in your area |
Books by Anu Garg
© 2010 Wordsmith.org
No comments:
Post a Comment