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bus·y

(bĭzē)

adj. bus·i·er, bus·i·est

1. Engaged in activity, as work; occupied. See Synonyms at active.

2. Characterized by or sustaining much activity: a busy morning; a busy street.

3. Being a busybody; meddlesome; prying.

4. Being in use, as a telephone line.

5. Cluttered with detail to the point of being distracting: a busy design.

tr.v. bus·ied, bus·y·ing, bus·ies

To make busy; occupy: busied myself preparing my tax return.

[Middle English bisi, busi, from Old English bysig.]

busi·ly adv.

busy·ness n.

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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