# fork

Pronunciation: say "FORK" US /fɔɹk/, UK /fɔːk/

## Noun

1. A utensil with prongs used to lift solid food to the mouth, or to hold food in place while cutting.
   - Simple: A small tool with thin pointed ends, used to pick up and eat food or hold it still while cutting.
   - _He speared a piece of chicken with his fork._
   - _At a formal dinner, several forks flank the plate, each meant for a different course._
2. A place where a road, path, or river divides into two or more branches; also, one of those branches.
   - Simple: A place where a road or river splits in two, or one of the parts it splits into.
   - _The trail reaches a fork about a mile in, where most hikers veer left._
   - _A weathered signpost stood at the fork, pointing toward two distant towns._
3. One of the separate parts into which something divides, such as a prong, a branch of a stream or road, or the barbed point of an arrow.
   - Simple: A part where something splits into two or more branches, like a prong or a branch of a road.
   - _Where the path divides, take the right fork toward the lake._
   - _An eagle built its nest in the top fork of the old oak._
5. On a bicycle or motorcycle, the part of the frame that holds the front wheel, letting the rider steer and balance.
   - Simple: The part of a bike or motorcycle that holds the front wheel and lets the rider steer.
   - _A good suspension fork soaks up bumps on rough trails._
   - _The mechanic realigned the fork after the front wheel was knocked loose._
6. A pronged tool used on farms or in gardens, such as a small hand tool for weeding or a larger one for turning soil.
   - Simple: A tool with long pointed ends, used for digging, lifting hay, or turning over soil.
   - _He drove the fork into the compost heap and turned it over._
   - _Gardeners use a fork to loosen compacted soil around the roots._
7. A point in life or in a course of action where one must choose between different paths; also, any one of those paths.
   - Simple: A time when you must choose between different ways forward, or one of those ways.
   - _Losing the contract brought the team to a fork, forcing a hard decision about its future._
   - _He stood at a fork in his career, weighing a steady salary against a riskier dream._
8. A two-pronged metal device that vibrates at a fixed pitch when struck, used as a reference for tuning instruments.
   - Simple: A small metal tool with two prongs that makes a clear, steady musical note when struck.
   - _The conductor struck a fork against his knee to give the choir their starting pitch._
   - _A fork tuned to A440 hums at a steady, unwavering frequency._
10. A powered truck with two horizontal prongs at the front, used to lift and move heavy loads; a forklift. *(colloquial)*
   - Simple: A machine with two flat metal arms at the front, used to lift and move heavy loads.
   - _The warehouse crew loaded the trailer with a fork in under an hour._
   - _He maneuvered the fork down the narrow aisle to reach the top shelf._
11. A split in a blockchain into two or more competing chains, as when blocks are mined at the same time or nodes follow incompatible protocol rules; also, a separate chain produced by such a split.
   - Simple: A split in a blockchain that creates two separate chains, often because users disagree about its rules.
   - _Developers warned that the upgrade could trigger a contentious fork._
   - _The 2017 split created a fork that lives on as a separate cryptocurrency._
12. In software, a separate version of a project made by copying and developing it independently; also, the split itself.
   - Simple: In software, a separate version made from a copy of another project.
   - _The team maintained a private fork with patches for their own servers._
   - _Volunteers started a fork of the app after the company abandoned it._
14. Either of the flat blades at the front of a forklift, in plural the whole set, onto which goods are loaded to be raised.
   - Simple: One of the flat metal arms on the front of a forklift, used to lift and carry loads.
   - _One fork of the forklift bent under the heavy load._
   - _The forks lifted the pallet smoothly to the top shelf._
16. A simultaneous attack on two of the opponent's pieces by a single piece, especially a knight.
   - Simple: A move in chess where one piece attacks two enemy pieces at the same time.
   - _A well-placed knight fork can win material outright._
   - _She spotted the fork three moves ahead and steered the game toward it._

## Verb

4. To divide into two or more separate branches, paths, or copies.
   - Simple: To split into two or more separate branches, paths, or copies.
   - _The trail forks at the ridge, with one branch climbing steeply._
   - _Most trails in the park fork at least once, so carry a map._
13. To lift or move material such as hay or food using a fork.
   - Simple: To lift or move something, like hay or food, using a tool with prongs.
   - _Farmhands fork loose straw into the loft before the rain comes._
   - _She forked the roasted vegetables onto a serving dish._
9. In software, to copy an existing project or code repository and develop the copy separately.
   - Simple: In software, to make your own copy of a project and change it separately.
   - _When the maintainers disagreed, a group chose to fork the project and steer it their own way._
   - _Frustrated by stalled updates, volunteers forked the program and released a faster build._
15. To attack two of the opponent's pieces simultaneously with a single piece.
   - Simple: To attack two of the other player's pieces at the same time with a single piece.
   - _Move the knight to e7 and you fork the queen and the king._
   - _She forked his rook and bishop, winning material in a single move._
17. Euphemistic form of fuck: a sound-alike used in place of the swear word, in its sexual sense or in angry, dismissive outbursts. — Euphemistic form of fuck.
   - Simple: Another word for fuck that sounds milder, used for sex or in angry or dismissive outbursts.
   - _Honestly, fork this job. I'm done with it and I'm going home._
   - _When the printer jammed again, she muttered, "What the fork?"_

## Other meanings

- (verb) To create a new child process by duplicating an existing process, which then runs as a separate copy.
- (noun) A splitting of content or data on one topic into separate versions, or one of those diverging versions.
- (verb) To strike someone in the crotch with a kick.
- (noun) The crotch: the region of the body where the legs divide from the trunk.
- (noun) In certain file systems, one of the separately accessible sets of data that make up a file, such as the data fork holding its main contents or a resource fork holding additional data.
- (noun) The raised front section of a saddle's frame, whose side bars run back to the cantle behind the rider.
- (noun) A gallows used for hanging criminals.
- (verb) Of a cereal plant, to put out its narrow leaf blades.
- (noun) The lowest point of the pit at the base of a mine where water collects.
- (verb) To pump or bail all the water out of a flooded mine shaft.

## Origin

Latin 'furca' (pitchfork, forked stake), whose origin is uncertain, is the ultimate source. It gave Old English 'force, forca' (a forked instrument) and Middle English 'forke' (a digging fork), and later Anglo-Norman and Old Northern French 'forque' strengthened the Middle English word. Dutch 'vork', German 'Forke', and Danish 'fork' are related, and the word replaced native Old English 'gafol'.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/fork (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).