# Do You Hold The Knife With Your Dominant Hand, Or The Fork With Your Dominant Hand? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 16, 2018, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-hold-the-knife-with-your-dominant-hand-or-the-fork-with-your-dominant-hand/824614 "2018-11-16T14:30:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Rhiannon8404](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rhiannon8404/32/17929_2.png) [@Rhiannon8404](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhiannon8404)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2018, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-hold-the-knife-with-your-dominant-hand-or-the-fork-with-your-dominant-hand/824614/41 "2018-11-16T23:17:13Z")
Born and raised in California I’m left-handed. I hold my fork in my left hand. Cut with my right hand. Set my knife down to eat. We never still had our knife in our hand while bringing food to our mouths and we were to always have our forks positioned right side up. “We’re not hillbillies!” My lefty dad did the same thing as me: fork in left, cut with right. My right-handed mother and siblings all cut with their right hand, then had to switch their for to their right hand to eat. ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2018, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-hold-the-knife-with-your-dominant-hand-or-the-fork-with-your-dominant-hand/824614/42 "2018-11-17T00:00:23Z")
American. Right-handed. Use dominant hand for both. Don’t understand why there’s not a button for that. ---
**Author:** ![Doug\_K](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5ac83/32.png) [@Doug\_K](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_K)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2018, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-hold-the-knife-with-your-dominant-hand-or-the-fork-with-your-dominant-hand/824614/43 "2018-11-17T00:01:25Z")
> [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > American (from Philly). I grew up with the switching thing. After 6 months in Europe, I started using my left (non-dominant) to stab and eat the meat I had cut. But when using the fork as a scoop I put it in my right hand. One thing I have never been able to do is cut with the knife in the left hand. That would be the most efficient. But I eat too fast anyway so inefficiency is desirable. > > Today lunch consisted of poached salmon and boiled potatoes. I cut them both with the edge of the fork and never used my left hand. The ironic thing is that the zig-zag (switching) method originated in Europe. The purpose was to slow one down to encourage dinner conversation rather than just shoveling it in. Fork in left and knife was considered somewhat barbaric. Europeans started abandoning the zig-zag style not long after Americans started adopting it. Probably so they could continue to make fun of Americans for eating funny. O.K., I made that last sentence up. Anyway, there’s an instructional video on formal dining etiquette that they show the students at my school. (I’m staff, not a student). The overly proper woman teaching the course says that either method is perfectly proper and that each has advantages and disadvantages. ---
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2018, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-hold-the-knife-with-your-dominant-hand-or-the-fork-with-your-dominant-hand/824614/44 "2018-11-17T00:12:32Z")
> [@blindboyard](#): > > Non-American, I hold the fork in the dominant hand. I don’t switch hands to eat, though. Your fork hand holds the food in place while it is being cut, then lifts it to the mouth. This is a far more natural role for the dominant hand than mere cutting. Exactly. No need to switch, which would be awkward anyway. Cut with the left and eat with the right. What’s so hard about that? I understand that etiquette dictates the reverse, but I don’t enjoy the food as much with a fork in my left hand. ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2018, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-hold-the-knife-with-your-dominant-hand-or-the-fork-with-your-dominant-hand/824614/45 "2018-11-17T01:16:40Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > I sure was. We’d catch hell if we always had the knife and fork in our hands like “a savage” or “two fisted eater.” For us it was “raised in a barn” or “raised by wolves.” Knife in right/fork (tines down) in left to cut. Fork (tines up) in right to eat. Utensils down between bites. (It always seems strange when I see people just holding their forks and knives while chewing). Pushing your food onto your fork with your knife was unthinkable. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2018, 11:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-hold-the-knife-with-your-dominant-hand-or-the-fork-with-your-dominant-hand/824614/46 "2018-11-17T11:00:31Z")
Not really American, but taught table manners by American-raised parents, so I wrote “American”. Right handed, knife in right, fork in left, held throughout the meal. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2018, 12:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-hold-the-knife-with-your-dominant-hand-or-the-fork-with-your-dominant-hand/824614/47 "2018-11-17T12:00:43Z")
Murican. I really don’t recall there ever being rules. I’m sure there were, as I remember us having paper placemats as kids and other stuff that was meant to properly socialize us, but if so, it evades me. Fast forward to many years later, I hold my knife in my dominant hand (right) because my left is completely worthless and couldn’t cut its way out of a paper bag. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2018, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-hold-the-knife-with-your-dominant-hand-or-the-fork-with-your-dominant-hand/824614/48 "2018-11-17T12:21:53Z")
> [@HeyHomie](#): > > I have to disagree. Handedness doesn’t really factor into it, IMHO. The issue seems to me a matter of dominant-vs-non-dominant hand and which utensil is held in it. Naw. I’m left handed, but also somewhat ambidextrous. I hold my fork in my left hand and my knife in my right hand because that’s how the table is set. > [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](#): > > Exactly. No need to switch, which would be awkward anyway. Cut with the left and eat with the right. What’s so hard about that? I understand that etiquette dictates the reverse, but I don’t enjoy the food as much with a fork in my left hand. My daughter is extremely right handed, and had very little dexterity in her left hand. She switches. She probably has to. No one else in the family switches hands, she surely didn’t learn it from us. She also holds her fork in her fist when using the knife. I don’t think her left hand has the dexterity to hold the fork in her fingers with her left hand. ---
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2018, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-hold-the-knife-with-your-dominant-hand-or-the-fork-with-your-dominant-hand/824614/49 "2018-11-17T19:31:39Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > …My daughter is extremely right handed, and had very little dexterity in her left hand. She switches. She probably has to. No one else in the family switches hands, she surely didn’t learn it from us. I actually don’t think that most parents are the ones to teach pre-teens or teens these kinds of things. You kind of get used to the way your kid eats, so unless etiquette was a priority to you, you generally don’t care. I used to hold my spoon or fork in a fist until I was in high school and other kids started making fun of me. My parents never noticed. > [@](#): > > She also holds her fork in her fist when using the knife. I don’t think her left hand has the dexterity to hold the fork in her fingers with her left hand. Switching hands just seems like a lot of work. At least she’s not lazy.😉 ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2018, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-hold-the-knife-with-your-dominant-hand-or-the-fork-with-your-dominant-hand/824614/50 "2018-11-17T20:11:24Z")
American. I keep my fork in my dominant (right) hand. No switching. If I need to use my knife, I just pick it up with my free non-dominant (left) hand. I don’t get switching. No reason for it. ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2018, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-hold-the-knife-with-your-dominant-hand-or-the-fork-with-your-dominant-hand/824614/51 "2018-11-17T20:20:12Z")
Poll results are currently showing ‘American’ and ‘Non American’ proportions of fork-switchers to be basically the same. That’s interesting. Maybe nobody actually gives a crap about what’s ‘proper etiquette’ we all just do what’s easy for us . What’s official ettiquette in Canada? ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2018, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-hold-the-knife-with-your-dominant-hand-or-the-fork-with-your-dominant-hand/824614/52 "2018-11-17T21:05:42Z")
> [@Aspidistra](#): > > Poll results are currently showing ‘American’ and ‘Non American’ proportions of fork-switchers to be basically the same. That’s interesting. Maybe nobody actually gives a crap about what’s ‘proper etiquette’ we all just do what’s easy for us . > > What’s official ettiquette in Canada? The poll doesn’t ask about switching. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-hold-the-knife-with-your-dominant-hand-or-the-fork-with-your-dominant-hand/824614/53 "2018-11-18T00:19:32Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > The poll doesn’t ask about switching. Yup. That would have been a more interesting question, imo. ---
**Author:** ![Les\_Espaces\_Du\_Sommeil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/les_espaces_du_sommeil/32/308_2.png) [@Les\_Espaces\_Du\_Sommeil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Les_Espaces_Du_Sommeil)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 8:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-hold-the-knife-with-your-dominant-hand-or-the-fork-with-your-dominant-hand/824614/54 "2018-11-18T08:58:02Z")
Not American: knife in dominant hand. But I switch occasionally if I don’t have to use the knife for some time. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-hold-the-knife-with-your-dominant-hand-or-the-fork-with-your-dominant-hand/824614/55 "2018-11-18T13:23:26Z")
American here, right-handed, raised in the northeast and now living in California: I do the ‘switchy thing’ — always have, likely always will. ---
**Author:** ![LH75](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lh75/32/4438_2.png) [@LH75](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LH75)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-hold-the-knife-with-your-dominant-hand-or-the-fork-with-your-dominant-hand/824614/56 "2018-11-18T20:38:51Z")
While I am mostly ambidextrous, I normally use my knife in my right and fork in the left while eating and do not switch. I am American and grew up in the Midwest in a single parent household that was slightly below the poverty line ---
**Author:** ![brainstall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/35a633/32.png) [@brainstall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brainstall)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-hold-the-knife-with-your-dominant-hand-or-the-fork-with-your-dominant-hand/824614/57 "2018-11-18T21:53:06Z")
Canadian. Fork in left hand, knife in (dominant) right hand. No switching. Everyone in my family eats this way and the first time I saw an American doing the switch thing I watched in fascination. It looked so bizarre to me. If I’m eating something that doesn’t require a knife I hold the fork in my right hand. ---
**Author:** ![HowSoonIsThen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e56c9b/32.png) [@HowSoonIsThen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HowSoonIsThen)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2018, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-hold-the-knife-with-your-dominant-hand-or-the-fork-with-your-dominant-hand/824614/58 "2018-11-19T00:12:19Z")
Non-American. Knife in dominant (right) hand and I don’t switch. I was taught that the “proper” way to eat was fork in left hand and knife in right hand. Now it feels natural. If I’m eating rice or something that only requires a fork, I’ll use my right hand. ---
**Author:** ![Kiwi\_Fruit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kiwi_fruit/32/12_2.png) [@Kiwi\_Fruit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kiwi_Fruit)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2018, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-hold-the-knife-with-your-dominant-hand-or-the-fork-with-your-dominant-hand/824614/59 "2018-11-19T00:45:52Z")
Non-american. If the dish I’m eating requires both knife and fork, then knife in right, fork in left, with tines pointed down. Some dishes only require a fork, and I could go either hand and the fork might be tines up or down. If the food needs to be stabbed, then tines down, otherwise just scoop up with the tines up. [Follow our quick and easy guide to basic cutlery etiquette – as we know it to be!:](https://www.goodfoodireland.ie/blog/did-you-know-lowdown-cutlery-etiquette) ``` The knife should be held in the right hand with the handle firmly tucked into the palm. The index finger should lie along the handle, this helps to control the movement of the knife. Holding your knife like a pencil is incorrect and allows little control over your cutting actions. The fork should be held in the left hand, prongs down into the food at an angle. If it is held correctly, handle firm in the palm of the hand, and index finger resting along the top, there should never be a need to stab it upright into the food being prepared for cutting, holding it a slight angle firmly gives control, securing the food on the plate while you make the cutting motion with your knife. When you hold your fork like a pencil then it is hard to control and the ungainly stabbing motion comes into play! ``` Okay, this is from an Irish website, but I learnt table etiquette from my mother and it was pretty much the same as that. ---
**Author:** ![Ponch8](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponch8/32/9883_2.png) [@Ponch8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponch8)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2018, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-hold-the-knife-with-your-dominant-hand-or-the-fork-with-your-dominant-hand/824614/60 "2018-11-19T02:36:01Z")
American: knife in dominant (right) hand, fork in left. I don’t do that hand-switching bullshit. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-hold-the-knife-with-your-dominant-hand-or-the-fork-with-your-dominant-hand/824614.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-hold-the-knife-with-your-dominant-hand-or-the-fork-with-your-dominant-hand/824614.md?page=4)