laundry list

American

noun

Informal.

a lengthy, especially random list of items.

a laundry list of hoped-for presents; a laundry list of someone's crimes.

laundry list British

noun

a list of items perceived as being long

a laundry list of complaints

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of laundry list

First recorded in 1955–60

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

laundry list

I don’t care if it contains added MSG and holds a laundry list of seasonings you can’t pronounce.

From Salon ● Jul. 19, 2026

A new California law will narrow the laundry list of food date labels on products to two, eliminating consumer confusion and halting the unintentional food waste that has resulted.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2026

His son’s medical expenses are never far from Harden’s mind, along with an ever-growing laundry list of concerns.

From Salon ● May 15, 2026

Every year the speechwriters tell themselves This time it’s not going to be a laundry list, only to realize by the end that it’s going to be a laundry list.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 23, 2026

I know it sounds like I’m just throwing out a laundry list of things going wrong, but it’s beyond crazy.

From "Popcorn" by Rob Harrell

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023