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Hobson's choice

(häb′sənz)

a choice of taking what is offered or nothing at all; lack of an alternative

Origin: after T. Hobson (1544?-1631), of Cambridge, England, who owned livery stables and let horses in strict order according to their position near the door

See Hobson's choice in American Heritage Dictionary 4

noun

An apparently free choice that offers no real alternative.

Origin:

Origin: After Thomas Hobson (1544?-1630), English keeper of a livery stable, from his requirement that customers take either the horse nearest the stable door or none

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