tough sledding

Idioms  

1. Difficult work or progress, as in This bill faces tough sledding in the legislature. This idiom transfers the route on which a sled can travel to other kinds of progress toward a goal. It was first recorded as hard sledding in 1839. For the antonym, see easy sledding.

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Example Sentences

History suggests it will be tough sledding if tech keeps faltering.

From Barron's • Feb. 5, 2026

“From the second he started throwing,” Olson said, “you could tell that he had his good stuff. … When he has his ‘A’ stuff, it’s tough sledding for the other side.”

From Washington Times • Apr. 1, 2023

Miami’s stats look more like those of a league average defense, so it looks like tough sledding again for a one-dimensional offense with cluster injuries in the trenches.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 9, 2022

The eight-episode “Five Days at Memorial,” premiering Friday, can indeed be tough sledding.

From New York Times • Aug. 11, 2022

But I want to tell you that we’ve had some pretty tough sledding lately—some that the old man doesn’t know about.”

From Colonel Carter's Christmas and The Romance of an Old-Fashioned Gentleman by Yohn, F. C. (Frederick Coffay)