Meaning & use
busyness
Last updated
UK/ˈbɪz.i.nəs/
US/ˈbɪz.i.nəs/
Meaning
noununcountable
The condition of having many things to do or of being full of activity.
Grammar: Uncountable: the busyness of the season.
Patterns
- the busyness of something
The busyness of the holiday season left her exhausted.
He hid his worries behind constant busyness.
The busyness of the market overwhelmed the visitors.
Common combinations
- constant busyness
- Constant busyness can hide real problems.
- the busyness of life
- The busyness of life leaves little time to read.
- morning busyness
- The morning busyness faded by ten.
- escape the busyness
- We took a trip to escape the busyness.
Synonyms and how they differ
- activity
- Activity is neutral, while busyness suggests being kept occupied, sometimes with unimportant things.
- hustle
- Hustle adds energy and noise, usually of crowds or work.
- bustle
- Bustle describes lively movement in a place, rather than a person's workload.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: busyness or business?
busyness vs business
Business means commerce, a company, or a matter; busyness means being busy.
Practice
She confused ___ with productivity, filling every hour without finishing anything important.
Choose one answer.
Busyness means being occupied. Business means commerce and does not make sense here, and the other words have different meanings.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “busyness”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.
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