TINE (STRUCTURAL)

A 'tine' is a process of metal, or a prong, often used to spear, hook, or otherwise carry other objects. A fork may have two, three, or more tines. Typically, the tines on a fork intended for use as an eating utensil are rather blunt. However, on other objects that have tines, the tines may be quite sharp.
Also in Chaos theory (Physics, non-linear dynamics), tines and subtines are branches on a bifurcation diagram.