shotgun method
v.— «The shotgun method used to be used. The doctor poured a great number of different herbs into a glass on the theory that some of them would do some good.» —“Edwards Was Re-Elected” Lincoln Daily News (Nebraska) June 12, 1916. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
Chris in Omaha, Nebraska, asks about the use of the adjective husky to describe the boys’ clothing section in a department store. This coded term refers to clothes made for heavier fellows. Husky was originally a positive term connoting the...
John in Omaha, Nebraska, wonders about a phrase that encourages someone to attend an event or risk being left out or feeling uncool: be there or be square. Don’t fall for the fake etymology about people wearing boxes on their heads! Ditto for...