Synonyms of pick-and-shovel

pick-and-shovel

adjective

ˈpik-ən(d)-ˈshə-vəl 

as in challenging

requiring considerable physical or mental effort

she loves coming up with the "big idea" but hates the actual pick-and-shovel work of starting a new business

Synonyms & Similar Words

• challenging
• difficult
• tough
• rigorous
• demanding
• hard
• formidable
• complicated
• testing
• heavy
• rough
• rugged
• killer
• tall
• murderous
• sweaty
• uphill
• intricate
• backbreaking
• exhausting
• severe
• strenuous
• exacting
• arduous
• grueling
• painful
• complex
• stiff
• effortful
• laborious
• toilsome
• serious
• herculean
• abstract
• problematic
• bruising
• hairy
• annoying
• moiling
• elusive
• hellacious
• involved
• tricky
• insoluble
• stubborn
• brutal
• thorny
• labored
• grim
• knotty
• trying
• tight
• Augean
• opaque
• oppressive
• troublesome
• distressing
• abstruse
• spiny
• burdensome
• recondite
• onerous
• stressful
• strict
• irksome
• vexatious
• ticklish
• stringent
• bothersome
• taxing
• cruel
• inhuman
• grievous

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• light
• simple
• easy
• soft
• cheap
• clear
• elementary
• effortless
• facile
• mindless
• undemanding
• manageable
• achievable
• uncomplicated
• doable
• smooth
• gentle
• comforting
• soothing
• relaxed
• accessible
• painless
• friendly
• user-friendly
• idiotproof

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of pick-and-shovel

Since then, investors have treated the industrial stock as a pick-and-shovel AI play instead of a lagging conglomerate. — Morgan Chittum, CNBC, 2 July 2026

Investors have an insatiable appetite to fund the pick-and-shovel businesses underpinning data-center buildouts and Ford’s version of an AI pivot shows that even staid companies like the 122-year-old giant aren’t above the fray. — Rohan Goswami, semafor.com, 14 May 2026

So far with Big Tech spending at an all-time high—fueled by a fear of being left behind—the pick-and-shovel approach has been paying dividends. — Peter Andersen, Forbes, 2 Dec. 2024