tall order

Idioms  

1. A goal that is hard to fulfill or achieve, as in Getting a thousand new subscribers is a tall order indeed. This expression uses tall in the sense of “impressively great” or “difficult.” [c. 1900]

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

tall order

We know baking a pie from scratch is a tall order for a weekday, but save this recipe for when you have more time this weekend.

From Slate ● Jul. 14, 2026

Going toe-to-toe with the Parisians over the long term, though, remains a tall order for a club which has readily embraced its underdog status.

From BBC ● Apr. 10, 2026

That’s a tall order for a compact book, especially given its subject’s long, complicated life.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 17, 2026

Creating conditions for regime change through a military campaign was always a tall order, said Assaf Orion, the former head of strategic planning for the Israeli military.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 12, 2026

First we had to get Quinby into the harness, and that was a tall order.

From "Willodeen" by Katherine Applegate

Related Words

• arduous
• challenging
• intimidating
• onerous
• powerful
• tough
• tremendous