two birds—one stone
Language: English
Part of speech: phrase
Senses: examples: text: “Why not come with me?” suggested the criminal with his pleasant smile. “You’ll be calling on these fellows, anyhow. Two birds—one stone.”
ref: 1925 April 4, Lorin A. Lathrop, “The Recollections of a Consul”, in The Saturday Evening Post, volume 197, number 40, Philadelphia, Pa.: The Curtis Publishing Company, section “The Man of the Letter”, page 4, column 3:
text: TWO BIRDS—ONE STONE / When a motorist buys a storage battery for his new radio set there is no reason why his automobile should not still be in the back of his head. The battery folk put up a little neater outfit for radio use, but a storage battery is unsightly in any event, so why not buy a regular automobile bettery^([sic]) and hide it behind the furniture? Get a battery that will do for your car.
ref: 1926 April 10, The Daily Ontario, Belleville, Ont., Motor News section, page [7], column 1:
text: Margery batted an eye and took thought. She had to explain that unguarded “Oo-oo-h!” and she wanted to get the corporal out of the way for a few minutes. Two birds—one stone—
ref: 1927 September, William Byron Mowery, “Tamarack Pass: A Story of Flashing Blades That Were Not Swords amid the Snowy Wastes of the Muskeg Country”, in Munsey’s Magazine, volume XCI, number 4, New York, N.Y.: The Frank A[ndrew] Munsey Company, […], section II, page 719, column 2:
text: TWO BIRDS—ONE STONE. Now that my boy’s vacation is over he won’t go back to school, having had a glorious time working in a garage learning the business. What do you suggest? DISAPPOINTED DAD. Answer—Ask the superintendent of schools whether he has a part-time system. If so your boy can work in the garage for part time and go to school part time. This will be killing two birds with one stone—the first bird being a normal and natural desire which boys have at that age to get out into the workaday world, and the second bird being, satisfying the need for education which too late he will realize he had missed.
ref: 1927 October 10, Arthur Dean, “Your Boy and Your Girl”, in The Washington Post, number 18,743, Washington, D.C.: The Washington Post Co., page 9, column 4:
text: TWO BIRDS—ONE STONE / The Minneapolis, Minnesota, club, as one of its major wartime activities, is supplying postcards for servicemen. The cards show scenes in Minneapolis and carry the Kiwanis emblem on the front. Costs were shaved to a minimum with the cooperation of members in the printing business.
ref: 1944 January, “Victory Parade”, in O. E. Peterson, editor, The Kiwanis Magazine, volume 29, number 1, Chicago, Ill.: Kiwanis International, page 32, column 2:
text: Two Birds—One Stone: All counselors realize the urgent need for orientation of new pupils. New teachers in a school—especially if they are inexperienced teachers—have just as urgent a need for orientation.
ref: 1954, Douglass Brown, “Here Is How We Do It: Programs and Practices around the Country”, in Bess Day, editor, The School Counselor, volume 1, number 2, Washington, D.C.: American School Counselor Association, page [2], column 2:
text: Anson Bolda put the Chicago letter in his pocket, tucked the gun under his belt, and carried the electronic eavesdropper from the hotel room. The pink convertible was waiting in the hotel parking lot, its engine still warm, but Bolda didn’t take the time to check it out for hidden bugs. If the fat shadow was again following him, two birds—one stone.
ref: 1967, Wilson Tucker, chapter 14, in The Warlock, New York, N.Y.: Avon Books, →LCCN, page 149:
text: Scores of Protestants, led by the likes of the Reverend Lyman Beecher and the famous inventor Samuel F. B. Morse, quickly saw a new reason for expanding the Protestant school system. It would not only help civilize street urchins, but also overcome the heresies of the Catholic church. Indeed, where Irish settled, the “two birds—one stone” theory clearly applied.
ref: 1977, Leonard L. Richards, “The Search for Order”, in “The Turbulent North”, in Carl N[eumann] Degler, editor, The Advent of American Democracy, 1815–1848 (Scott, Foresman American History Series), Glenview, Ill.: Scott, Foresman and Company, →ISBN, page 106:
text: Two birds—one stone / It is not clear why farmers did not see the logic of the Comfortractor. Maybe they did, but felt about a tractor-car combination as their wives would have felt about a washing machine that churns butter.
ref: 1977 February 21, Gary Owens, “The Comfortractor—a dream not everybody shared or Where were all those style-conscious equipment buyers when they were needed?”, in Implement & Tractor, page 46, column 1:
text: Two Birds—One Stone / When doing live sound reinforcement, the biggest problems arise from people speaking either too closely or too far away from the microphones. […] You can reduce the problem by creating some 4″ x 6″ cards, similar to the one shown, and handing them out to anyone who will be using the microphones, or placing them on the podium where the mic is located. While you are at it, make sure to include the name of your company, with your phone number and a brief list of the services you offer. In the corporate world, chances are good that these cards will circulate and bring you additional jobs.
ref: 2001 May, Robert A. Lindquist, “DJ Shopper: Rack Up Extra Cash”, in Robert A. Lindquist, editor, Mobile Beat, number 67, East Rochester, N.Y.: LA Communications Inc., →ISSN, page 38, column 2:
text: Look, I can hold out against her. She’ll be mad. But there won’t be anything she can do. Maybe she’ll be so mad she’ll want to get rid of me and let me go and live in St. John’s. Two birds—one stone.
ref: 2017, Charis Cotter, “Annie”, in The Painting, [Toronto, Ont.]: Tundra Books, →ISBN, page 197:
glosses: Alternative form of two birds with one stone.