English adjective: busy | |||
1. | busy actively or fully engaged or occupied | ||
Samples | Busy with her work. A busy man. Too busy to eat lunch. | ||
Similar | at work, drudging, engaged, laboring, labouring, occupied, overbusy, tied up, toiling, up to | ||
See also | diligent, employed | ||
Antonyms | idle | ||
2. | busy overcrowded or cluttered with detail | ||
Samples | A busy painting. A fussy design. | ||
Synonyms | fussy | ||
Similar | fancy | ||
Antonyms | plain | ||
3. | busy intrusive in a meddling or offensive manner | ||
Samples | An interfering old woman. Bustling about self-importantly making an officious nuisance of himself. Busy about other people's business. | ||
Synonyms | busybodied, interfering, meddlesome, meddling, officious | ||
Similar | intrusive | ||
Antonyms | not intrusive, unintrusive | ||
4. | busy crowded with or characterized by much activity | ||
Samples | A very busy week. A busy life. A busy street. A busy seaport. | ||
Similar | active | ||
Antonyms | inactive | ||
5. | busy (of facilities such as telephones or lavatories) unavailable for use by anyone else or indicating unavailability; (`engaged' is a British term for a busy telephone line) | ||
Samples | Her line is busy. Receptionists' telephones are always engaged. The lavatory is in use. Kept getting a busy signal. | ||
Synonyms | engaged, in use | ||
Similar | occupied | ||
Antonyms | unoccupied | ||
English verb: busy | |||
1. | busy (social) keep busy with | ||
Samples | She busies herself with her butterfly collection. | ||
Synonyms | occupy | ||
Pattern of use | Somebody ----s somebody. Somebody ----s somebody PP | ||
Broader (hypernym) | work | ||
Narrower (hyponym) | dabble, play around, potter, putter, smatter | ||