Meaning & use
fork in the road
Last updated
Meanings
phrasecountable
A point where a road splits into two different directions.
Grammar: Countable; plural is 'forks in the road'.
Patterns
- come to a fork in the road
- take the left fork in the road
- at a fork in the road
When we reached the fork in the road, we turned right toward the lake.
There is a fork in the road just past the old church; keep left.
The map shows a fork in the road near the top of the hill.
phrasecountablefigurative
A moment when you must choose between two important courses of action.
Grammar: Often used with 'at' or 'reach': at a fork in the road, reach a fork in the road.
Patterns
- be at a fork in the road
- reach a fork in the road
- come to a fork in the road
After finishing university, she felt she was at a fork in the road: work or travel.
The company is at a fork in the road and must decide whether to expand or sell.
He saw the offer as a fork in the road that could change his whole career.
Common combinations
- come to a fork in the road
- We came to a fork in the road and had to choose which way to go.
- at a fork in the road
- The project is at a fork in the road: we can either continue or stop.
- take the left fork
- Take the left fork at the fork in the road to reach the farm.
- reach a fork in the road
- After ten miles, we reached a fork in the road.
Synonyms and how they differ
- crossroads
- A crossroads is a place where two roads cross, while a fork in the road is where one road splits into two.
- junction
- A junction is a general point where roads meet; a fork in the road is specifically a Y-shaped split.
Commonly confused: fork in the road or fork?
fork in the road vs fork
A fork is the tool you eat with or the part where something splits; 'fork in the road' is the full phrase for the road feature.
Practice
We drove for miles until we reached a ______ and had to decide which way to go.
Choose one answer.
The fixed phrase is 'a fork in the road'. The other prepositions do not form the standard expression.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “fork in the road”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.