Hobson's Choice
Preserved but no longer current.
This or none. Thomas Hob- son (c. 1544-1631) was a carrier and inn- keeper at Cambridge who erected the hand- some conduit there, and settled "seven lays" of pasture ground towards its maintenance.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “Hobson's Choice” mean?
This or none. Thomas Hob- son (c. 1544-1631) was a carrier and inn- keeper at Cambridge who erected the hand- some conduit there, and settled "seven lays" of pasture ground towards its maintenance.
Is “Hobson's Choice” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.