This article refers to a type of table knife. For other uses see, Case knife .
A case knife is a name used throughout the American South to refer to a table knife, i.e. a knife intended for use at the dining table. The origin of this usage comes from a time when inn did not customarily provide eating utensils with meals. The table fork was relatively new, and was often sold in combination with a knife and, sometimes, a spoon. Thus the term refers to a knife that was sold in a case, as part of a set of utensils intended for use in dining.Case knife is also used to refer to a pocketknife made by W. R. Case & Sons Cutlery Co..