Jump To:

• double-duty
  double-duty

  adjective

  designed to fill two functions.
• double duty
  double duty

  Fulfilling two functions at the same time, as in Our pickup truck does double duty, since it is used for the business and for family outings.

double-duty

American  

[duhb-uhl-doo-tee, -dyoo-] / ˈdʌb əlˈdu ti, -ˈdju- /

adjective

1. designed to fill two functions.

   double-duty tools.

---

double duty Idioms  

1. Fulfilling two functions at the same time, as in Our pickup truck does double duty, since it is used for the business and for family outings.

---

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

double-duty double duty

This means vessels are doing double-duty with increasing risk of breakdowns.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 2, 2026

Anutin himself will pull double-duty, also serving as interior minister.

From Barron's ● Mar. 31, 2026

They can do double-duty as both home heaters and AC units and are pretty good at maintaining a constant temperature inside a home without the blast-then-cool-off cycle typical of a furnace.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 1, 2026

In that case, Ms. Bruno suggested considering a Roth I.R.A. as a kind of double-duty vehicle — one that can be used for long-term investing but also as a repository for an emergency fund.

From New York Times ● Feb. 25, 2023

In the corridor a few weak-kneed, pasty-faced students were making their way to and from the bathrooms, and a group of silent Helpers worked double-duty to keep the floors mopped.

From "The Mysterious Benedict Society" by Trenton Lee Stewart

Most people only have to do this double duty a few times a year, such as when the entire family gathers for holidays.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 29, 2026

The conference room served double duty as a co-founder’s bedroom.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 11, 2026

Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Paul Atkins has taken on double duty as both the financial industry’s top regulator and the most prominent cheerleader for the U.S. public equity markets.

From Barron's ● Feb. 11, 2026

But more often than not, there’s a way to let it pull double duty.

From Salon ● Jan. 11, 2026

It’s cold and my earmuffs are on, doing double duty.

From "Muffled" by Jennifer Gennari