heavy lifting

American  

[hev-ee lif-ting] / ˈhɛv i ˈlɪf tɪŋ /

noun

Informal.

1. hard work.

   A team of researchers did the heavy lifting for the author.

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Etymology

Origin of heavy lifting

First recorded in 1930–35

Example Sentences

“Wood does the heavy lifting in accomplishing that.”

From Los Angeles Times

You still cook lightly during the week — fresh vegetables, quick grains, small touches — but the heavy lifting is done.

From Salon

In a sign of the times, Reid said much of the heavy lifting that went into creating this chart was handled by ChatGPT — OpenAI’s chatbot that kicked off the AI race three years ago.

From MarketWatch

Luckily, Fifa will have a computer to do most of the heavy lifting and make sure everything runs smoothly.

From BBC

That leaves productivity growth to do the heavy lifting.

From Barron's