kitchen-sink operation
noun phrase

- an approach that utilizes every available resource, tactic, and method to achieve its objective

- holding nothing back; throwing "everything but the kitchen sink" at a problem

- a comprehensive strategy that leaves no stone unturned and no tool unused

Modern Business & Military Terminology

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PHRASE ORIGIN

"Kitchen-sink operation" springs from one of America's most colourful idioms, with roots that trace back to domestic life and wartime desperation.

It originated in early 1900s American English from the idea that when moving house or packing for a long journey, people would take everything portable—except the kitchen sink, which was permanently fixed to the plumbing.

The phrase gained military significance as armies literally stripped occupied territories of everything valuable and moveable—again, everything but the kitchen sink.

In the 1950s-1960s it extended to mean “absolutely everything available".

"Kitchen-sink operation" finally emerged as corporate and military jargon describing comprehensive strategies that deploy every possible resource.

The phrase shares linguistic DNA with "all hands on deck," "full-court press," "scorched earth," and "shock and awe"—all expressing maximum effort and resource deployment.

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THE KITCHEN-SINK MENTALITY

You can spot kitchen-sink operations everywhere once you recognize the pattern—and there's something both impressive and concerning about them.

Unlike targeted strategies, kitchen-sink operations are about overwhelming force and comprehensive coverage. It's the startup that launches on every social platform simultaneously instead of mastering one. The political campaign that runs TV ads, digital campaigns, door-to-door canvassing, influencer partnerships, and guerrilla marketing all at once. The company restructuring that changes leadership, systems, culture, and strategy in a single quarter.

Some organizations default to kitchen-sink thinking when facing crisis. Notice the difference between strategic resource allocation and throwing everything at the wall to see what sticks. See how kitchen-sink operations can signal both determination and desperation.

The most successful kitchen-sink operations happen when resources are abundant and time is short—like emergency medical responses or military operations where failure isn't an option. But they can also mask poor planning, unclear priorities, or panic-driven decision-making.

In a resource-conscious world, knowing when to go kitchen-sink versus when to act surgically might be one of the most important strategic decisions leaders face. Because sometimes we need everything we’ve got—and sometimes we just need the right thing.

Helga & Paul Smith

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SYNONYMS

all-hands effort, all-or-nothing strategy, all-out assault, blitz strategy, comprehensive campaign, full-court press, full-scale operation, KITCHEN-SINK OPERATION, leave-no-stone-unturned strategy, maximum deployment, no-holds-barred approach, overwhelming force, with all means

Military/Business: combined arms approach, integrated strategy, multi-vector attack, omnibus operation, saturated attack (response), total resource deployment, shock-and-awe strategy, total mobilization

Informal: throwing the book at it, pulling out all the stops, going nuclear, carpet-bombing approach, sledgehammer strategy

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SMUGGLE OWAD into an English conversation today, say something like:

"When the deadline got moved up by three weeks, we had to go full KITCHEN-SINK OPERATION—every department, every resource, everything we had."

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THANKS to Günter & Hans for suggesting today's OWAD.