The word for today is…
whipsaw (noun) – A narrow two-person crosscut saw.
(verb) – 1. To cut with a whipsaw.
2. To cause to move or alternate rapidly in contrasting directions.
3. In card games, especially poker, for two players to raise and re-raise with one or more players in between who must call the raises in order to stay in the game.
4. To defeat or best in two ways at once.
Source : The Free Dictionary
Etymology : A whipsaw is a type of hand-powered saw worked by two people, one of whom stands on or above the log being sawed and the other below it, usually in a pit. The tool dates back to the 15th century, but it was not until the 19th century that anyone thought to use the saw’s name figuratively to describe situations in which someone or something is doubly “cut,” or hurt. Today, the word is commonly used when discussing financial crises or losses as well as ideological changes (as in government policy) that might “cut.”
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