noun

low-hanging fruit

loh-HANG-ing froot

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Low-hanging fruit (noun) means the easiest tasks, targets or gains available, achieved with the least effort. In business it usually means the quick wins a team goes after before tackling anything hard. Example: “Fixing the broken links is low-hanging fruit; the site rebuild can wait.”

noun

The easiest tasks, targets or gains available, achieved with the least effort. In business it usually means the quick wins a team goes after before tackling anything hard.

"Fixing the broken links is low-hanging fruit; the site rebuild can wait."

"Their growth came entirely from low-hanging fruit, and it has now run out."

How to use low-hanging fruit

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishThe easy jobs you can finish quickly without much effort.

When to use it

Business jargon, now so overused that it is a standard entry on office cliche lists. It is uncountable, so there is no plural: say plenty of low-hanging fruit, not low-hanging fruits.

Memory tip

Hyphenate low-hanging before fruit. Using the phrase can imply the speaker is avoiding the difficult work, so it sometimes carries a faint criticism.

Trace the full origin ↓

Easily confused with

low-hanging fruit → quick win no-brainer

Common pairings

pick the low-hanging fruit plenty of low-hanging fruit beyond the low-hanging fruit low-hanging fruit first

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C2 · Advanced serendipity Fortunate discoveries made entirely by accident.

Gen Z slang rizz Charm — the ability to attract a romantic interest.

B2 · Intermediate empathy The capacity to share another person’s feelings.

C1 · Advanced nonchalant Casually calm and relaxed; unconcerned.

Internet slang delulu Delusional — believing something against the odds.

Etymology nostalgia Greek nostos “return home” + algos “pain”.

C2 · Advanced serendipity Fortunate discoveries made entirely by accident.

Gen Z slang rizz Charm — the ability to attract a romantic interest.

B2 · Intermediate empathy The capacity to share another person’s feelings.

C1 · Advanced nonchalant Casually calm and relaxed; unconcerned.

Internet slang delulu Delusional — believing something against the odds.

Etymology nostalgia Greek nostos “return home” + algos “pain”.

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Fixing the broken links is _____; the site rebuild can wait.

Etymology

A metaphor from harvesting: the fruit within arm's reach is picked first because it needs no ladder.

Origin: English

Synonyms

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quick wins easy pickings soft targets easy money

Antonyms

heavy lifting hard yards

Rhymes for low-hanging fruit

quit suit fruit Inuit Jesuit circuit recruit lawsuit pursuit biscuit conduit swimsuit

See all rhymes for low-hanging fruit →

Frequently asked questions

Is low-hanging fruit a compliment or a criticism?

It depends on the framing. Going after low-hanging fruit is sensible prioritisation when resources are tight, but describing someone's results as only low-hanging fruit suggests they took the easy option and left the real problems untouched.

Is the plural "low-hanging fruits"?

No. Fruit is uncountable in this idiom, so the phrase stays the same whether you mean one easy task or twenty. Say there is a lot of low-hanging fruit.

What is the meaning of low-hanging fruit?

"low-hanging fruit" (noun) means the easiest tasks, targets or gains available, achieved with the least effort. In business it usually means the quick wins a team goes after before tackling anything hard.

What is another word for low-hanging fruit?

Other words for "low-hanging fruit" include quick wins, easy pickings, soft targets, easy money.