# What is the antonym idiom of "Low Hanging Fruit"?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-antonym-idiom-of-low-hanging-fruit/838623>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [August 13, 2019, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-antonym-idiom-of-low-hanging-fruit/838623 "2019-08-13T19:32:12Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 7\
**Page:** 3

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**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\
**Post date:** [August 14, 2019, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-antonym-idiom-of-low-hanging-fruit/838623/41 "2019-08-14T17:00:56Z")

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> [@Walken\_After\_Midnight](#):
>
> However, if one is landing among stars, that would suggest that one has landed nowhere near one’s target, the Moon.

It would also imply that you’re dead and floating through the void of space for all eternity. Who knew positive thinking could be so depressing?

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**Author:** ![Oukile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/13edae/32.png) [@Oukile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oukile)\
**Post date:** [August 14, 2019, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-antonym-idiom-of-low-hanging-fruit/838623/42 "2019-08-14T17:58:54Z")

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Slightly different from what the OP is asking, but “something that requires investing efforts for unlikely return” will be:

“A wild goose chase”

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**Author:** ![Wrenching\_Spanners](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ecb155/32.png) [@Wrenching\_Spanners](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wrenching_Spanners)\
**Post date:** [August 15, 2019, 11:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-antonym-idiom-of-low-hanging-fruit/838623/43 "2019-08-15T11:07:33Z")

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I’ve heard black hole, treadmill, and bottomless pit all used to describe high effort project tasks with the same reward as low effort project tasks.

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**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\
**Post date:** [August 15, 2019, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-antonym-idiom-of-low-hanging-fruit/838623/44 "2019-08-15T14:37:26Z")

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> [@Ponderoid](#):
>
> I think **am74944** nailed it. I can just hear this in a company meeting: “We already got the low-hanging fruit; now we’ve been chasing ever-diminishing returns and scraping the bottom of the barrel.”

If that is indeed the context.

But the OP hasn’t really given an exact context, so everyone here is just throwing out answers blindly.

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**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\
**Post date:** [August 15, 2019, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-antonym-idiom-of-low-hanging-fruit/838623/45 "2019-08-15T15:27:46Z")

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> [@guizot](#):
>
> … everyone here is just throwing out answers blindly.

I finally found a thread that plays to my strengths!

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**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\
**Post date:** [August 15, 2019, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-antonym-idiom-of-low-hanging-fruit/838623/46 "2019-08-15T15:28:24Z")

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> [@Wrenching\_Spanners](#):
>
> I’ve heard black hole, treadmill, and bottomless pit all used to describe high effort project tasks with the same reward as low effort project tasks.

But those imply no reward or futility more than anything.

The opposite of “easy pickin’s” is tasks that are difficult and/or the payoff is not high.

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**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\
**Post date:** [August 15, 2019, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-antonym-idiom-of-low-hanging-fruit/838623/47 "2019-08-15T16:41:45Z")

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Low hanging fruit has high ROI (Return On Investment). One opposite are items with low ROI.

Other terms we use in project planning are Long Poles (things that are required but will take the longest amount of time so they set the schedule) or Heavy Lifting (things that aren’t easy so they will require resources and time, but are necessary and provide high value).

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