tour de force: Meaning and Definition of

tour de force

Pronunciation: (toor" du fôrs', -fōrs' Fr. t&oomacrr du fôrs'), [key]
— pl. tours de force
  1. an exceptional achievement by an artist, author, or the like, that is unlikely to be equaled by that person or anyone else; stroke of genius:Moby Dick was a tour de force. Herman Melville's
  2. a particularly adroit maneuver or technique in handling a difficult situation: The way the president got his bill through the Senate was a tour de force.
  3. a feat requiring unusual strength, skill, or ingenuity.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.