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Hobson's choice |
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Hobson's choice the choice between taking what is offered and getting nothing at all. (From the name of a stable owner in the seventeenth century who always hired out the horse nearest the door.) We didn't really want that particular hotel, but it was a case of Hobson's choice. We booked very late and there was nothing else left. If you want a yellow car, it's Hobson's choice. The garage has only one. See also: choice Hobson's choice a situation in which it seems that you can choose between different things or actions, but there is really only one thing that you can take or do Usage notes: Thomas Hobson was a man who kept horses and did not give people a choice about which horse they could have. It's Hobson's choice, because if I don't agree to do what they want, I'll lose my job. See also: choice How to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us, add a link to this page, add the site to iGoogle, or visit webmaster's page for free fun content. |
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Perhaps the most persistent practice of presenting Hobson's choices is found in the "debate" every four years between the standard bearers of the Republican and Democratic Parties. Dole is edging off the stump and back to Washington, planning a burst of legislation that will define his campaign and, aides hope, force President Clinton into some political Hobson's choices. To head off such Hobson's choices, Planned Parenthood is . |
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