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business

[biz-nis]

noun

an occupation, profession, or trade: His business is poultry farming.

the purchase and sale of goods in an attempt to make a profit.

a person, partnership, or corporation engaged in commerce, manufacturing, or a service; profit-seeking enterprise or concern.

volume of trade; patronage: Most of the store's business comes from local families.

a building or site where commercial work is carried on, as a factory, store, or office; place of work: His business is on the corner of Broadway and Elm Street.

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that with which a person is principally and seriously concerned: Words are a writer's business.

something with which a person is rightfully concerned: What they are doing is none of my business.

affair; project: We were exasperated by the whole business.

an assignment or task; chore: It's your business to wash the dishes now.

10.

Also called piece of business, stage business. Theater. a movement or gesture, especially a minor one, used by an actor to give expressiveness, drama, detail, etc., to a scene or to help portray a character.

11.

excrement: used as a euphemism.

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adjective

12.

of, noting, or pertaining to business, its organization, or its procedures.

13.

containing, suitable for, or welcoming business or commerce: New York is a good business town.

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Business is always a great word to know.

So is interrobang. Does it mean:

a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question.

the offspring of a zebra and a donkey.

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Idioms

14.

business is business, profit has precedence over personal considerations: He is reluctant to fire his friend, but business is business.

15.

do one's business, (usually of an animal or child) to defecate or urinate: housebreaking a puppy to do his business outdoors.

16.

get down to business, to apply oneself to serious matters; concentrate on work: They finally got down to business and signed the contract.

17.

give someone the business, Informal.

to make difficulties for someone; treat harshly: Instead of a straight answer they give him the business with a needless run-around.

to scold severely; give a tongue-lashing to: The passengers will give the bus driver the business if he keeps driving so recklessly.

18.

have no business, to have no right: You have no business coming into this house.

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19.

mean business, to propose to take action or be serious in intent; be in earnest: By the fire in his eye we knew that he meant business.

20.

mind one's own business, to refrain from meddling in the affairs of others: When he inquired about the noise coming from the neighbor's apartment, he was told to mind his own business.

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Origin:
before 950; Middle English; Old English bisignes. See busy, -ness

Related forms

an·ti·busi·ness, adjective

in·ter·busi·ness, adjective

mul·ti·busi·ness, adjective

non·busi·ness, adjective

o·ver·bus·i·ness, noun

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pro·busi·ness, adjective

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Synonyms
1. calling, vocation, employment. See occupation. 2. commerce, trade, traffic. 3. company, firm.

Pronunciation note
See isn't.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To business

Example Sentences

Last summer I became a junior professor of business ethics.

New research finds that business students lie more often in e-mail than when communicating using pen and paper.

Comics is a business of personalities.

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Collins

World English Dictionary

business (ˈbɪznɪs)

—n
1.	a trade or profession
2.	an industrial, commercial, or professional operation; purchase and sale of goods and services: the tailoring business
3.	a commercial or industrial establishment, such as a firm or factory
4.	commercial activity; dealings (esp in the phrase do business)
5.	volume or quantity of commercial activity: business is poor today
6.	commercial policy or procedure: overcharging is bad business
7.	proper or rightful concern or responsibility (often in the phrase mind one's own business)
8.	a special task; assignment
9.	a matter or matters to be attended to: the business of the meeting
10.	an affair; matter: a queer business; I'm tired of the whole business
11.	serious work or activity: get down to business
12.	a complicated affair; rigmarole
13.	informal a vaguely defined collection or area: jets, fast cars, and all that business
14.	theatre Also called: stage business an incidental action, such as lighting a pipe, performed by an actor for dramatic effect
15.	a group of ferrets
16.	euphemistic defecation (esp in the phrase do one's business)
17.	slang prostitution
18.	informal like nobody's business extremely well or fast
19.	mean business to be in earnest
20.	informal do the business to achieve what is required: it tastes vile, but it does the business

[Old English bisignis solicitude, attentiveness, from bisigbusy + -nis-ness]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

business

O.E. bisignes (Northumbrian) "care, anxiety, occupation," from bisig "careful, anxious, busy, occupied, diligent" (see busy) + -ness. Sense of "work, occupation" is first recorded late 14c. Sense of "trade, commercial engagements" is first attested

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1727. Modern two-syllable pronunciation is 17c. Business card first attested 1840; business letter from 1766.

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American Heritage

Idioms & Phrases

business

In addition to the idiom beginning with business, also see funny business; get down to (business); go about (one's business); have no business doing; land-office business; like mad (nobody's business); make it one's business; mean business; mind one's own business; monkey business; none of one's business; out of business; send someone about his or her business; the business.

Encyclopedia Britannica

Encyclopedia

business

The collapse of the subprime mortgage market by mid-2007, though long predicted, wreaked havoc on both the housing and financial industries (several major banks posted mortgage-related losses in the billions of dollars) and resulted in a major credit crunch that impaired many businesses' ability to secure short-term financing. (See Sidebar: United States.)

Learn more about business with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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