branching, ramification, fork, forking
(noun) the act of branching out or dividing into branches
furcation, forking
(noun) the place where something divides into branches
Source: WordNet® 3.1
forking
present participle of fork
forking (plural forkings)
division into forks
Source: Wiktionary
Fork, n. Etym: [AS. forc, fr. L. furca. Cf. Fourch, Furcate.]
1. An instrument consisting consisting of a handle with a shank terminating in two or more prongs or tines, which are usually of metal, parallel and slightly curved; -- used from piercing, holding, taking up, or pitching anything.
2. Anything furcate or like of a fork in shape, or furcate at the extremity; as, a tuning fork.
3. One of the parts into which anything is furcated or divided; a prong; a branch of a stream, a road, etc.; a barbed point, as of an arrow. Let it fall . . . though the fork invade The region of my heart. Shak. A thunderbolt with three forks. Addison.
4. The place where a division or a union occurs; the angle or opening between two branches or limbs; as, the fork of a river, a tree, or a road.
5. The gibbet. [Obs.] Bp. Butler. Fork beam (Shipbuilding), a half beam to support a deck, where hatchways occur.
– Fork chuck (Wood Turning), a lathe center having two prongs for driving the work.
– Fork head. (a) The barbed head of an arrow. (b) The forked end of a rod which forms part of a knuckle joint.
– In fork. (Mining) A mine is said to be in fork, or an engine to "have the water in fork," when all the water is drawn out of the mine. Ure.
– The forks of a river or a road, the branches into which it divides, or which come together to form it; the place where separation or union takes place.
Fork, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Forked; p. pr. & vb. n. Forking.]
1. To shoot into blades, as corn. The corn beginneth to fork. Mortimer. 1
2. To divide into two or more branches; as, a road, a tree, or a stream forks.
Fork, v. t.
Definition: To raise, or pitch with a fork, as hay; to dig or turn over with a fork, as the soil. Forking the sheaves on the high-laden cart. Prof. Wilson. To fork over or out, to hand or pay over, as money. [Slang] G. Eliot.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
1 March 2025
(adjective) (chemistry) of or relating to or containing one or more benzene rings; “an aromatic organic compound”
The Boston Tea Party helped popularize coffee in America. The hefty tea tax imposed on the colonies in 1773 resulted in America switching from tea to coffee. In the lead up to the Revolutionary War, it became patriotic to sip java instead of tea. The Civil War made the drink more pervasive. Coffee helped energize tired troops, and drinking it became an expression of freedom.
