Meaning & use
silly business
Last updated
Meanings
phraseuncountableinformal
Foolish or childish behavior that wastes time.
Grammar: Used as an uncountable noun phrase, often with 'this' or 'all this'.
Patterns
- all this silly business
- stop this silly business
Let's stop this silly business and get back to work.
All that silly business at the party embarrassed everyone.
phraseuncountableinformaldisapproving
Dishonest or shady activity, especially in business or politics.
Grammar: Often used with 'go in for' or 'be up to' to suggest wrongdoing.
Patterns
- be up to silly business
- go in for silly business
The managers were up to some silly business with the accounts.
Voters are tired of the silly business in city hall.
Common combinations
- all this silly business
- All this silly business has to stop before someone gets hurt.
- be up to silly business
- The boys were up to silly business behind the shed.
- stop the silly business
- Please stop the silly business and listen to me.
- a lot of silly business
- There was a lot of silly business going on at the office.
Synonyms and how they differ
- nonsense
- Nonsense means foolish talk or ideas in general, while silly business suggests foolish or shady actions.
- monkey business
- Monkey business is very close but sounds more American and more strongly suggests cheating.
- foolishness
- Foolishness is a more formal, neutral word for silly behavior, without the hint of dishonesty.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: silly business or business?
silly business vs business
Business alone means work or trade; silly business is a fixed phrase meaning foolish or shady activity.
Practice
The newspaper reported that officials were up to ______ with public money.
Choose one answer.
'Silly business' is uncountable in this idiom, so it takes no article or plural. 'A silly business' would suggest a company, which is not the meaning here.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “silly business”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.