Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

no picnic

Idioms  
  1. Difficult, no fun, as in Recovering from abdominal surgery is no picnic. This expression, alluding to a picnic as a pleasant occasion, was first recorded in 1888.


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.

Small-caps are no picnic either, with more than 40% of companies in the Russell 2000 being unprofitable, including lots of biotechs that require expertise to vet.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 30, 2026

Enough about the savory options, because no picnic is complete without its sweet fixings — and no summer picnic is complete without a cold treat to help battle the heat.

From Salon • Jul. 30, 2025

Invading south Lebanon, however well reasoned or cleverly planned, is no picnic.

From Slate • Sep. 18, 2024

Woods always enjoyed a course where par was no picnic and players faced options.

From Seattle Times • Nov. 2, 2023

Not to mention me turning forty last year, which was no picnic, but people always guess me not a day over thirty so who’s counting?

From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver

Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Look it up. Learn it forever.

Remember "no picnic" for good with VocabTrainer. Expand your vocabulary effortlessly with personalized learning tools that adapt to your goals.

Take me to Vocabulary.com