French Expression of the Day: Faire d’une pierre deux coups
The most organised of people will likely make use of this handy French Expression.
Why do I need to know faire d’une pierre deux coups ?
Because you might want to use this expression after a particularly productive errand-running-day.
What does it mean?
Faire d’une pierre deux coups – roughly pronounced fair doon pee-air duh koo - translates exactly to “make one rock two shots.”
If your first instinct is to find it similar to the English expression, “to kill two birds with one stone,” then you would be correct. The French expression carries the same meaning as the English one - which is to achieve two goals at the same time.
The origin of this phrase - for both languages - goes back to the time when people used to hunt with a sling. It would be a great achievement for a hunter to manage to kill two birds with a single stone.
The expression is still used today, with variations in several different languages, even though most of mankind no longer uses stones to hunt. Nevertheless - it is quite a feat to manage to accomplish two distinct goals in just one action.
Use it like this
J'ai fait d'une pierre deux coups en achetant le cadeau et le repas au même endroit. – I killed two birds with one stone by buying the gift and the meal at the same place.
Vous pouvez faire d'une pierre deux coups en postant votre lettre en même temps que vous récupérez votre colis? – You could kill two birds with one stone by mailing your letter at the same time as picking up your package?
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Why do I need to know faire d’une pierre deux coups ?
Because you might want to use this expression after a particularly productive errand-running-day.
What does it mean?
Faire d’une pierre deux coups – roughly pronounced fair doon pee-air duh koo - translates exactly to “make one rock two shots.”
If your first instinct is to find it similar to the English expression, “to kill two birds with one stone,” then you would be correct. The French expression carries the same meaning as the English one - which is to achieve two goals at the same time.
The origin of this phrase - for both languages - goes back to the time when people used to hunt with a sling. It would be a great achievement for a hunter to manage to kill two birds with a single stone.
The expression is still used today, with variations in several different languages, even though most of mankind no longer uses stones to hunt. Nevertheless - it is quite a feat to manage to accomplish two distinct goals in just one action.
Use it like this
J'ai fait d'une pierre deux coups en achetant le cadeau et le repas au même endroit. – I killed two birds with one stone by buying the gift and the meal at the same place.
Vous pouvez faire d'une pierre deux coups en postant votre lettre en même temps que vous récupérez votre colis? – You could kill two birds with one stone by mailing your letter at the same time as picking up your package?
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