ItalianPrendere due piccioni con una fava
Meaning: To achieve two goals with a single effort.
Literally: To catch two pigeons with one fava bean
Example: “Vado in centro a pagare la bolletta e faccio la spesa: due piccioni con una fava.” — I'll pay the bill downtown and do the shopping: killing two birds with one stone.
English equivalent: To kill two birds with one stone
Origin: Catching two pigeons with one bean. The usual explanation is old bird-trapping: pigeons are very fond of fava beans, and a bean used as bait in a snare could, with luck, bring in two birds at once. The story is repeated in many sources but none documents it. English kills two birds with one stone, and French fait d'une pierre deux coups.
Equivalents in other languages
Korean: 꿩 먹고 알 먹고 (Kkwong meokgo al meokgo) Literally: Eating the pheasant and its egg too
French: Faire d'une pierre deux coups Literally: To make two blows with one stone
Indonesian: Sambil menyelam minum air Literally: While diving, drink water
Chinese: 一箭双雕 (Yī jiàn shuāng diāo) Literally: One arrow, two hawks
English: kill two birds with one stone
Spanish: Matar dos pájaros de un tiro Literally: To kill two birds with one shot
Japanese: 一石二鳥 (Isseki nichō) Literally: One stone, two birds
German: Zwei Fliegen mit einer Klappe schlagen Literally: To swat two flies with one swatter
Dutch: Twee vliegen in één klap slaan Literally: To swat two flies in one blow
Polish: Upiec dwie pieczenie na jednym ogniu Literally: To roast two roasts on one fire
Portuguese: Matar dois coelhos com uma cajadada só Literally: To kill two rabbits with one blow of the stick
Turkish: Bir taşla iki kuş vurmak Literally: To hit two birds with one stone
More Italian idioms
- Avere la botte piena e la moglie ubriaca To want to have it both ways.
- Ogni morte di papa Extremely rarely; once in a blue moon.
- Avere gli occhi foderati di prosciutto To be unable to see what is right in front of you.
- Fare le corna To ward off bad luck — or to signal that a partner is being unfaithful.
- Tagliare la testa al toro To settle a matter decisively, once and for all.
- Avere le mani in pasta To be deeply involved in something.
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