Is it correct to use the phrase "one and the same" to say that it says exactly the same thing or doing the same thing as before? If you can't say so, then what would you say instead?
She repeats one and the same.
He says one the same.
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2 Answers
No, "one and the same" is special. I'm not sure I should say it is idiomatic, but it is not a phrase that has many uses. It is only for saying that two things are actually the same exact thing. Bruce Wayne and Batman are one and the same, for example. They are one. They are the same.
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Yes - it is a colorful/fancy way of saying they are identical. Dec 14, 2020 at 21:12
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1I'm not sure it does mean that two things are identical to each other, except maybe as a sort of metaphor. It means that two things are actually not two things at all, but one.– JaimeMar 1 at 7:43
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Yes; I was in error. I meant that their identity was the same. I think I was thinking about math jargon or something. Mar 2 at 8:43
I'm not sure it does mean that two things are identical to (as in exactly the same thing as) each other, except just maybe as a sort of metaphor.
It means that two things are actually not two things at all, but one.
It's also worth remembering that it's used as an adjective, not a noun. For this reason your example is wrong. "She said one and the same thing" would be better, but still a little off (or at least a little strange) in my opinion, because she didn't actually say the very same statement as whatever it's being compared against. She may have said the same thing, but not one and the same thing. Though you could argue that she was repeating one and the same idea.
"A witch hazel and a hamamelis are one and the same plant [species]" works fine, as does "The hamamelis and the witch hazel are one and the same." But only if the reference is identical, not if the references are to two different things identical to one another. Two hamamelis of the same size and shape and the same variety might be said to be 'practically identical,' but not 'one and the same plant.'
"They're talking about one and the same concept" would be fine, but "They're uttering one and the same sentence" seems a little strange to me.
