† busyn.1
Obsolete.
1. Activity, occupation, business; the state of being actively employed; an instance of this. Also in there was busy, busy was had: there was bustle or stir.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > doing > activity or occupation > [noun]
busyingeOE
busyOE
busyship?c1225
busyhead1340
occupation?1387
occupyinga1400
businessc1405
vacationc1450
employing1459
employment1542
entertainment1551
activity1570
trade1591
negotiation1628
engagement1661
employ1675
busyness1809
occupancy1826
carry-on1917
the world > action or operation > doing > activity or occupation > [noun] > of a thing
busyOE
OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 1st Ser. (Royal) (1997) xxxv. 479 Þonne hi..mid eorðlicum teolungum ungefohlice hi gebysgiað..þonne ne magon hi for þære bysga smeagan ymbe þæs hælendes menniscnysse.
OE Rule St. Benet (Corpus Cambr.) l. 79 Þa gewunelican wæge hyra þeowdomes ne for weorces bysegum, ne for færeldes hi nateshwon forgymelesian.
OE Rule St. Benet (Corpus Cambr.) liii. 85 Þonne hy læssan bysega [a1225 Winteney bisega; L. occupationem] habbað, faran to swylcan weorce and hyrsumnesse.
c1400 (?c1380) Patience 157 Þer watz busy, ouer-borde bale to kest..Her kysttes & her coferes..& al to lyȝten þat lome.
c1425 Bk. Found. St. Bartholomew's (1923) 31 (MED) Aftir a Ioconde feiste, bisy in this place was hadde of recouerynge men yn to helthe.
c1440 (?a1400) Morte Arthure l. 3630 (MED) The bolde kynge es in a barge and abowtte rowes, All bare-heuvede for besye.
c1450 (a1375) Octavian (Calig.) (1979) l. 340 (MED) Noþer of hem myȝt fram oþer ascape For besy of fyȝt.
2. Anxiety, solicitude, care; affliction, trouble; an instance of this. Cf. business n. 1.Only in Old English.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > suffering > state of being upset or perturbed > worry > anxiety > [noun]
mourningeOE
businessOE
busyOE
carefulnessa1000
carec1000
howc1000
embeþonkc1200
thought?c1250
cark1330
curea1340
exercisec1386
solicitude?a1412
pensienessc1450
anxietya1475
fear1490
thought-taking1508
pensement1516
carp1548
caring1556
hoe1567
thoughtfulness1569
carking1583
caretaking1625
anxiousness1636
solicitousness1636
concern1692
solicitation1693
anxietude1709
twitchiness1834
uptightness1969
OE Guthlac A 714 Is þæt min broþor, mec his bysgu gehreaw.
OE Beowulf (2008) 281 Ic þæs Hroðgar mæg..ræd gelæran hu he..feond oferswyðeþ—gyf him edwendan [read edwenden] æfre scolde bealuwa bisigu, bot eft cuman.
lOE King Ælfred tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (Bodl.) (2009) I. Pref. 239 Ða bisgu us sint swiþe earfoþrime þe on his dagum on þa ricu becoman þe he underfangen hæfde.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2012; most recently modified version published online December 2020).
busyn.2
/ˈbɪzi/, U.S. /ˈbɪzi/ 1. With the and plural agreement. Busy people as a class.
ΚΠ
1601 N. Breton No Whippinge, nor Trippinge sig. b2 Know you a Plotter? studdy not his Plots, But leaue the busie, to their businesse.
a1767 W. Farington Serm. Important Subj. (1769) xii. 354 The busy are called from their cares, and the gay from their amusements.
1876 Good Words Apr. 241/1 There can be no doubt that the busy can be cruel also.
1922 Oral Hygiene July 1009 The busy have no time for pain.
2006 J. M. Lander Inventing Polemic i. 72 Presumably, having acquired a taste for Foxe, the busy will find time and the poor will find money.
2. British slang. A detective; a police officer. Frequently in plural, with the.
ΘΚΠ
society > law > law enforcement > investigation of crime > [noun] > detective
plant1812
plain clothes1822
detective1850
plainclothesman1856
mouser1863
D.1869
sleuth1872
tec1879
dee1882
demon1889
sleuth-hound1890
split1891
fink1903
hawkshaw1903
busy1904
dick1905
gumshoe1913
Richard1914
shamus1925
cozzer1950
Five-O1983
1904 Daily Chron. 17 Sept. 6/6 We had better slide; he looks like a ‘busy’.
1925 E. Wallace Mind of Mr. J. G. Reeder ii. 22 ‘It's that busy from the Yard,’ whispered Bride... The ‘busy’ was Sergeant Allford, CID,..a detective of some promise.
1948 M. Allingham More Work for Undertaker (1949) xiv. 179 I don't know 'ow long we've got before the busies come trampin' in.
1989 in R. Graef Talking Blues iii. 108 Black guy walks in, spots me for a ‘bizzy’ and spits on the floor.
2004 H. Walsh Brass i. 12 And these knobheads, they starts trying to grab her and saying let's call the busies and what have you.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2012; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
busyadj.
/ˈbɪzi/, U.S. /ˈbɪzi/α. Old English bisig, Old English bysig, Old English bysigige (plural, transmission error), Old English–1500s bisy, early Middle English bisegæste (superlative), early Middle English bisegere (comparative), early Middle English bisegure (comparative), early Middle English bisgre (comparative), Middle English bisaie, Middle English bise, Middle English bisiȝ, Middle English bissy, Middle English bisye, Middle English byse, Middle English bysi, Middle English byssy, Middle English–1500s bisi, Middle English–1500s bisie, Middle English–1500s bysie, Middle English–1500s bysy, Middle English–1500s bysye; Scottish pre-1700 bisie, pre-1700 bisse, pre-1700 bissie, pre-1700 bissy, pre-1700 bisy, pre-1700 bysse, pre-1700 byssy, 1700s–1800s bizzie, 1700s– bizzy.
β. Middle English–1500s buysy, Middle English–1600s busi, Middle English–1600s busye, Middle English–1700s busie, Middle English– busy, 1500s buisye, 1500s–1600s buysie, 1500s–1700s buisie, 1500s–1700s buisy, 1600s buissy, 1600s bussy; Scottish pre-1700 buisie, pre-1700 busie, pre-1700 bussie, pre-1700 bussy, pre-1700 1700s– busy.
γ. Middle English bese, Middle English besi, Middle English bessy, Middle English–1500s besie, Middle English–1500s besye, Middle English–1600s besy, 1500s beusie, 1600s beisi; Scottish pre-1700 beisse, pre-1700 besey, pre-1700 besie, pre-1700 bessie, pre-1700 besy, pre-1700 besye.
1. Occupied with or concentrating on a particular activity; actively engaged; doing something that engrosses the attention.In the earlier examples this sense is sometimes difficult to distinguish from that of ‘careful, eager, anxious’ (cf. sense 4). The latter notion has now disappeared, though a trace of it is found in Johnson's definition: ‘employed with earnestness’.
a. With about, at, on, with (also †after, †mid, †of, †over, †umbe, †upon) some object, purpose, etc.
ΚΠ
eOE Metrical Dialogue of Solomon & Saturn (Corpus Cambr. 422) i. 61 Min hige dreoseð, bysig [OE Corpus Cambr. 41 bisi] æfter bocum.
OE Ælfric Lives of Saints (Julius) (1881) I. 22 Oft bið seo sawul on anum þinge oððe on anum geþohte swa bysig þæt heo ne gymð hwa hyre gehende bið.
OE Ælfric Lives of Saints (Julius) (1881) I. 456 Se bisceop wæs bysig mid þam cynincge.
OE tr. Apollonius of Tyre (1958) xix. 30 Min dohtor is nu swiðe bisy ymbe hyre leornunga.
c1390 (a1376) W. Langland Piers Plowman (Vernon) (1867) A. viii. l. 103 (MED) I schal sese of my sowynge..Ne aboute my lyflode so bisy beo no more!
?c1430 (c1400) Rule St. Francis (Corpus Cambr.) in F. D. Matthew Eng. Wks. Wyclif (1880) 40 Þat þei be not bisi of here temporal goodis.
1480 R. Good Let. 24 June in Cely Lett. (1975) 83 All ouer houssowld..by byssy at makyng of hay now.
a1500 Walter of Henley's Husbandry (Sloane) (1890) 58 To be more ware off doinge amys & to be more besye abovte þeir werke & youris.
1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene iii. vii. sig. Iiv The Hag she found, Busie (as seem'd) about some wicked gin.
1600 W. Shakespeare Much Ado about Nothing i. ii. 3 He is very busie about it. View more context for this quotation
1633 J. Ford Loves Sacrifice iii. sig. G2v I am so busie with his friuolous proiect.
1712 J. Addison Spectator No. 329. ¶1 He had been very busie..upon Baker's Chronicle.
1719 D. Defoe Life Robinson Crusoe 283 He was so busy about his Father.
1823 C. Lamb Oxf. in Vacation in Elia 21 Busy as a moth over some rotten archive.
1874 J. R. Green Short Hist. Eng. People v. §3. 231 Busy with the cares of political office.
1969 ‘G. Black’ Cold Jungle xi. 160 The birds ought to be busy on their dawn chorus.
1996 World's Fair 11 Oct. 15/5 Paul and Michael..were busy at work on the..rack-saw bench.
2007 New Yorker 2 July 39/3 The next day at school, my mind was busy with Steve Austin.
b. Without construction. Chiefly in predicative use.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > doing > activity or occupation > [adjective]
busylOE
sisela1400
importune1449
busied1576
resiant1583
pragmatical1590
doing1591
negotiated1604
practical1617
affairé1802
operative1816
occupied1897
lOE Distichs of Cato (Trin. Cambr.) lxxxi (homiletic commentary) in Anglia (1972) 90 16 Gif ðe heafdu anes weges nellað, þonne sceal þæt bodig bion þy bysigre.
?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 139 Se þe sechnesse is mare se þe goldsmið is bisegere.
c1400 (?a1300) Kyng Alisaunder (Laud) (1952) l. 3902 Whan he Alisaunder besy seeþ.
a1500 (c1380) J. Wyclif Eng. Wks. (1880) 476 Herfore seiþ crist..þat men shulden not be bisi to þe morowe.
c1540 (?a1400) Destr. Troy 6047 Bise was the buerne all the bare night.
1611 Bible (King James) 1 Kings xx. 40 As thy seruant was busie here and there. View more context for this quotation
a1616 W. Shakespeare Taming of Shrew (1623) v. ii. 87 She is busie, and she cannot come. View more context for this quotation
1715 J. Gay Epist. Earl Burlington 106 Our shirts her busy fingers rub, While the sope lathers oer the foaming tub.
1752 S. Johnson Rambler No. 201. ⁋12 Time slips..away, while he is either idle or busy.
1801 R. Southey Thalaba I. iv. 210 The youth, whose busy mind Dwelt on Lobabu's..words.
1843 T. Carlyle Past & Present iii. xii. 278 A People energetically busy; heaving, struggling, all shoulders at the wheel.
1883 J. A. Froude Short Stud. IV. ii. i. 170 His children knew him as a continually busy, useful man of the world.
1928 S. G. H. Beaman Tales of Toytown 53 ‘Did you tell him I am busy?’ the Mayor asked.
1964 H. E. Keyes in E. D. Andrews & F. Andrews Shaker Furnit. p. ix The fruit of happily busy hands.
2007 Independent 26 Mar. 33/1 One [bank] window open for service while the rest of them try to look busy at the back.
c.
(a) With in, preceding simple noun. In later use chiefly in busy in thought (cf. deep in thought at thought n. Phrases 5a).
ΚΠ
?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 68 Þus ha beoð aa bisie in þis fule meoster.
c1390 in Archiv f. das Studium der Neueren Sprachen (1877) 57 245 (MED) And beo bisy in hire seruys.
a1400 (c1300) Northern Homily: Serm. on Gospels (Coll. Phys.) in Middle Eng. Dict. at Bisi Me bihoued..Be bisi in mi fader needes.
a1475 in W. C. Hazlitt Remains Early Pop. Poetry Eng. (1866) II. 20 Be bessy in Godis servys.
1596 Raigne of Edward III sig. E2v I haue discribde my Lord, As I was busie in my watchfull charge. The proud Armado of king Edwards ships.
1663 Sir C. Lyttelton Let. 13 Jan. in E. M. Thompson Corr. Family of Hatton (1878) I. 30 I am soe buisy..in the dispatch of a fleete.
1702 N. Rowe Ambitious Step-mother (ed. 2) i. i. 235 So busie were my faculties in thought.
1840 C. Dickens Master Humphrey's Clock I. 97 It is curious to imagine these people of the world, busy in thought, turning their eyes toward the countless spheres that shine above us.
2000 T. Pijoan Pueblo Indian Wisdom i. 13 Grandfather was busy in thought and weaving.
(b) With in or (now usually) with preposition omitted, and verbal noun: occupied doing something.
ΚΠ
1516 J. Skayman in Farming & Gardening in Late Medieval Norfolk (Norfolk Rec. Soc.) (1997) 118 I was besy in gatheryng vppe mony for my master ageyn the obite day.
c1680 W. Beveridge Serm. (1729) I. 430 Busie in providing a suitable entertainment.
?1697 J. Lewis Mem. Duke of Glocester (1789) 38 He was then very busy shewing how he would have me build a ship.
1713 J. Addison in Guardian 20 July 1/1 Busie in finding out the Art of Flying.
1756 tr. J. G. Keyssler Trav. I. xxiii. 211 In the mean time she was busy packing up in her palace.
1837 H. Martineau Society in Amer. II. 6 All hands were busy in unshipping the cargo, to lighten the vessel.
1847 W. E. Forster 27 Aug. in T. W. Reid Life W. E. Forster (1888) I. vii. 209 He [sc. Carlyle] is busy sleeping.
1859 ‘G. Eliot’ Adam Bede I. i. vi. 131 Men are busy there mending the harness.
1910 Church Times 11 Nov. 631/2 We have lately been busy in deploring the sabotage of the French railway strikers.
1925 W. Cather Professor's House i. xiii. 143 Ever since it was finished, plumbers and masons and carpenters had been kept busy patching and repairing it.
1986 R. Narayan Talkative Man 34 His hands busy nailing and cutting frames.
2006 Bark Jan. 12 I also take her to doggie daycare when I am busy working.
d. Similarly with to do something (formerly also †for, †for to do, something). Now rare.
ΚΠ
1340 Ayenbite (1866) 226 Zaynte pauel wyþnimþ þe yonge wyfmen wodewen, þet were ydele and bysye to guonne an to comene ganglinde.
a1425 (a1400) Prick of Conscience (Galba & Harl.) (1863) l. 5489 Þe devels..Þat to tempte men..ay er bysy.
a1425 J. Wyclif Sel. Eng. Wks. (1869) I. 36 Men..shulden be bisye for blisse.
a1464 J. Capgrave Abbreuiacion of Cron. (Cambr. Gg.4.12) (1983) 73 If we be bisi for to gete us tresoure in heuene, God schal send us sufficiens in erde.
a1500 (?a1450) Gesta Romanorum (Harl. 7333) (1879) 245 (MED) Late vs be euer besye to plese god.
1533 T. More Answere Poysened Bk. Pref. sig. Aa.iiiiv The leche that..sytteth by the syke man bysy about to cure hym.
1629 tr. S. Pelegromius Descr. S'hertogenbosh 21 The English were busie to fill the ditch.
1726 Life of Penn in Wks. I. 138 Busie for Forms.
1792 T. Holcroft Anna St. Ives VI. cxii. 183 All hell seems busy to blacken me!
1837 T. Carlyle French Revol. III. v. v. 321 Busy for his share, in ‘organizing victory’.
1899 Mod. Lang. Notes 14 304/1 In our days the ferment of the ancient epics is again busy to pervade literature.
1921 U. Sinclair Bk. of Life 119 A wise ruler..is apt to be surrounded by a class of parasites..who are busy to thwart his will.
1998 J. Pouwer in J. Miedema et al. Perspectives Bird's Head 178 He was busy to establish and extend his power.
2.
a. In extended use of (material or immaterial) things: continually active; occupied or engaged (in some activity).
ΚΠ
OE Battle of Maldon (1942) 110 Hi leton þa of folman..garas fleogan; bogan wæron bysige.
1586 in W. A. Craigie Maitland Quarto MS (1920) 140 My pen wes bessie till endyite.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry V (1623) iv. 0. 14 The Armourers.., With busie Hammers closing Riuets vp. View more context for this quotation
a1763 W. Shenstone Wks. Verse & Prose (1764) I. 308 Birds..With busy pinion skim the glitt'ring wave.
1779 E. Clark Misc. Poems 111 He view'd the busy, pecking train, Regaling rich on pubble grain.
1813 W. Scott Rokeby i. iii. 6 Grief was busy in his breast.
1827 T. Carlyle tr. J. A. Musæus in German Romance I. 110 The screeching of the busy saw did not escape his ear.
a1854 H. Reed Lect. Eng. Lit. (1855) iv. 143 Time is busy in the work of change.
1863 A. W. Kinglake Invasion of Crimea I. vii. 98 For many days rumour was busy.
1874 J. R. Green Short Hist. Eng. People vi. §3. 290 Busy as was Caxton's printing-press.
1922 V. Lauriston Twenty-first Burr ix. 99 Miss Fan Sifton was seated beside her on the porch, her busy needles clicking.
2002 P. Norton & S. H. Clark Peter Norton's New Inside PC ii. 198 [With this device] it is possible to receive a fax while the printer was busy printing a separate document.
b. Originally U.S. spec. Of a telephone or telephone line: = engaged adj. 3; (of a signal, etc.) indicating this. See also busy tone n. at Compounds 2.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > telecommunication > telegraphy or telephony > telephony > [adjective] > status of line
private1852
busy1883
engaged1891
secure1961
scrambled1962
1883 Kansas City Rev. Sci. & Industry Oct. 367 The operator..quickly tests..whether that line is busy or not.
1894 Jrnl. Electr. Engin. 23 63 False busy signals were frequently received. Now a third wire and an automatic restoring indicator has made the busy test reliable.
1898 Bibliotheca Sacra July 532 He claims that the attorneys for the League were not notified because their telephone was busy.
1913 G. Burgess Love in Hurry 235 Hello!.. Yes, the phone was busy; some one just rang me up.
1997 J. Steingarten Man who ate Everything (1998) v. 341 Its consumer help line was busy for a entire day.
2003 Herald Sun (Melbourne) (Nexis) 31 July 69 He had planned to give evidence by telephone but his mobile was busy each time..[the] tribunal chairman..called.
3. † a. Devoted to some business; active, assiduous, diligent, industrious. Of a warrior: keen to fight, bold. Obsolete.In later use merged with 3b.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > care, carefulness, or attention > [adjective] > diligent or industrious
busyOE
swinkfulOE
laboriousa1393
virtuousc1450
eident1529
operose1546
laboursome1552
industrious1591
work-likea1642
work-brittle1647
notable1666
nitle1673
hard-working1682
worksome1830
shirtsleeve1864
workful1875
OE Paris Psalter (1932) lviii. 3 Þi nu mine sawle swiþe bysige feondas mine fæcne ofþryhtum [read ofþryhtun].
c1225 (?c1200) St. Margaret (Bodl.) (1934) 36 Ich am in hare beddes se bisi ham a-buten, þet summes-weis ha schulen ham sclepinde sulen.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 3191 Moni bisi kempen, Þeo fihten wið þone duke al þene dæi longe.
a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 1423 (MED) xxx busy burnes, barounes ful bolde.
a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1871) III. 353 (MED) He made hym [sc. Plato] so besy to fynde þe solucioun of þe questioun, and so he deide.
c1475 (c1445) R. Pecock Donet (1921) 27 (MED) Sone, it is forto wille, chese, and be bisie forto knowe..alle þo trouþis.
1488 (c1478) Hary Actis & Deidis Schir William Wallace (Adv.) (1968–9) iii. l. 390 He in wer was besy, wicht and wis.
a1500 Lancelot of Laik (1870) 2449 He was bissy and was deligent.
1565 R. Wever Lusty Juventus sig. Di Yea, by Gods foot that I wyll be busye And I may saye to you I can play the knaue secretly.
1670 T. Blount Glossographia (ed. 3) Operose, busie, diligent in labour.
b. Constantly or habitually occupied; always active or employed; having a great deal to do. Of things: constantly active or in motion.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > doing > activity or occupation > [adjective] > fully or constantly
busya1398
well-occupied1530
bebusied1603
throng1627
polyponous1853
busy-busy1900
the world > action or operation > doing > activity or occupation > [adjective] > fully or constantly > of things
busy1702
a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xviii. xxv. 1165 Noþyng is more busy and witty þan þe hound.
c1405 (c1385) G. Chaucer Knight's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 633 The bisy [c1410 Harl. 7334 busy, c1430 Cambr. Gg.4.27 besye] larke, messager of daye.
1548 H. Latimer Notable Serm. sig. D.viv No Lordelye loyterer..,but a busie ploughe man.
1628 J. Earle Micro-cosmogr. xiii. sig. C12v The busie mans recreation, the idle mans businesse.
1702 N. Rowe Ambitious Step-mother (ed. 2) i. i. 220 The Etherial Energy That busie restless Principle.
1720 I. Watts Divine & Moral Songs xx How doth the little busy bee Improve each shining hour!
1729 W. Law Serious Call iii. 37 Penitens was a busy, notable Tradesman, and very prosperous in his dealings.
1814 W. Scott Waverley I. viii. 102 Curiosity, the busiest passion of the idle. View more context for this quotation
1834 T. Carlyle Sartor Resartus i. iii. 5/2 A most busy brain.
1898 E. von Arnim Elizabeth & her German Garden 37 Our neighbour and his wife are both busy and charming, with a whole troop of..children to keep them occupied.
1929 H. W. Haggard Devils, Drugs, & Doctors v. 108 Simpson was a busy practitioner. His writing was done in snatches.
1958 Woman 18 Oct. 4/3 In these days of ‘ready-mix’ cakes, ‘instant puddings’ and other time-saving boons to the busy housewife.
1998 A. Wood EastEnders (BBC TV script) (O.E.D. Archive) Episode 603. 24 Come on, spit it out. I'm a busy woman.
c. Reduplicated for emphasis, esp. in busy, busy, busy: indicating frenetic or constant activity, or that a person has too much to do (sometimes with the implication that a person is ostentatiously or affectedly busy).
ΚΠ
1672 Duke of Buckingham Rehearsal v. i. 44 In scorching noon-day, whil'st the traveller stayes, Busie, busie, busie, busie, we bustle along.
1832 J. K. Paulding Westward Ho! II. xiii. 140 Then she goes on, busy, busy, busy, never satisfied, more work, more money, and all for the dem publique good.
1887 J. T. Trowbridge Little Master xxviii. 211 ‘Busy! busy! busy!’ was his ever-recurring excuse. But Mrs. Corson bethought her that he could always find time for a good dinner.
1913 A. Rothery Our Common Road 283 Too busy to come—too busy to stay—too busy to go—busy, busy, busy—that is the slogan of the modern woman!
1955 Chicago Sunday Tribune 30 Jan. iv. 5 (advt.) They [sc. university graduates] usually occupy positions where they are busy, busy, busy always!
1996 Time Out 31 July 72/3 We're talking to New York's home office set here, laptops-a-go-go, busy busy busy.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > care, carefulness, or attention > [adjective]
busyOE
carefula1000
orne?c1225
intentivec1290
soignous1340
curiousc1386
diligentc1400
well-advisedc1405
thoughtfulc1450
thoughtyc1480
keepful1489
tentfula1525
respective1525
solicit?1526
heedful1548
heedy1548
tentyc1555
chare1564
respectful1585
tentible1603
solicitous1610
observant1627
care-taking1825
leery1911
the mind > emotion > suffering > state of being upset or perturbed > worry > anxiety > [adjective]
busyOE
howful970
carefulOE
angerful?c1225
yemelichc1275
thoughtfulc1300
anguishousc1325
curiousc1400
carkfulc1449
solicitate?a1475
solicit?1526
fearful1535
anxious1548
carking1567
solicitous1570
solicitudinousa1682
thoughted1869
uptight1934
the mind > language > speech > request > [adjective] > pressing or urgent (of request)
busyc1400
effectual1418
effectuous1489
emulous1535
pressinga1626
OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. (headings to readings) xx Sed regnum dei omnibus præferendum docet nec debere sollicitum esse in crastinum : ah ric Godes allum fore læras ne rehtlic is bisig sie in morgen.
OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 2nd Ser. (Cambr. Gg.3.28) xxxi. 270 Drihten bead þæt we næron bysige and carfulle cweðende, hwæt sceole we etan oððe hwæt drincan.
lOE tr. R. d'Escures Sermo in Festis Sancte Marie Virginis in R. D.-N. Warner Early Eng. Homilies (1917) 134 Martha, Martha, þu eart bisig and gedrefd on feale þingan.
lOE tr. R. d'Escures Sermo in Festis Sancte Marie Virginis in R. D.-N. Warner Early Eng. Homilies (1917) 138 Heo [sc. Mary] nis na læng bisig to fostrigen hire Sune swa swa cilde.
a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 588 (MED) Þat burde was euer hire bi, busy hire to plese.
a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) iv. l. 509 With besy herte to poursuie Thing which that is to love due.
c1400 ( G. Chaucer Treat. Astrolabe (Cambr. Dd.3.53) (1872) Prol. 1 Thy bisi preyere..to lerne the tretis of the astrelabie.
?1406 T. Hoccleve La Mâle Règle l. 25 in E. P. Hammond Eng. Verse between Chaucer & Surrey (1927) 60/2 My grief and bisy smert.
?c1450 (?a1400) J. Wyclif Eng. Wks. (1880) 362 Bissy study and contemplacyon.
1483 ( tr. G. Deguileville Pilgrimage of Soul (Caxton) iv. xxiv. f. lxx v Besy entendement to that that she techeth.
1513 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid vii. vii. 10 The byssy curis of Turnus mariage Skalding hir breist and mynd all in a rage.
a1525 Eng. Conquest Ireland (Trin. Dublin) 104 Throgh bysy besechynge of the erle.
5.
a. Of an action, occupation, etc.: energetically carried on; pursued vigorously (now rare). Of conditions, business, trade, etc.: that keeps a person or persons constantly occupied.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > vigour or energy > [adjective] > of action: involving or requiring vigour > carried out or proceeding with vigour
stiffc1250
busyc1275
greatc1275
sternc1275
smart?a1400
stark1489
thronga1525
vigorous1524
stout1582
intensive1605
spiritful?1611
warm1627
intense1645
mettlesome1645
spirited1670
mettled1682
sturdy1697
energetic1700
vivid1702
robustful1800
toughish1840
lively1844
full out1920
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 1097 He ferde ouer Scotte water..& mid bisie [c1300 Otho busie] i-fihte Brut-lond heo wolden iwinnen.
a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) ii. l. 1764 He made a besi haste And hath assembled him an host.
a1475 in A. Clark Eng. Reg. Godstow Nunnery (1905) i. 167 Aftur mani respites of deliberacion..& a bisi tretinge I-made bitwene hem.
1548 H. Latimer Notable Serm. sig. B.iii Right prelatynge is buisye labouryng.
1591 R. Greene Second Pt. Conny-catching sig. F2 The Black Arte is picking of Lockes, and to this busie trade two persons are required.
a1657 G. Daniel Poems (1878) II. 82 Poor crauling Emmetts! in what busie toyle Wee slip away our Time?
1718 A. Pope tr. Homer Iliad IV. xvi. 778 On ev'ry side the busy Combate grows.
1769 Junius Lett. xxiii. 112 The latest moments of your life were dedicated to the same..busy agitations.
1814 L. Hunt Feast of Poets 33 Persons of every kind who are engaged in the busier pursuits of society.
1872 J. Yeats Growth Commerce 143 A busy trade in timber.
1972 F. Mansur Bodrum iii. 58 The older tailors..are usually alone, with an apprentice or two when things get busy.
2010 Evening Standard (Nexis) 11 June [The doctor] admitted to mistakes during ‘very busy’ conditions in A&E.
b. Of a time or place: full of business or activity.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > vigour or energy > [adjective] > brisk or active > full of brisk activity (of times or places)
quickc1395
busy1530
stirring1647
vital1742
lively1764
busyish1851
buzzing1882
mouvementé1888
bubbling1912
1530 W. Tyndale Pract. Prelates sig. C.viiv Fynallye in this busye worlde ye Kinges of Lumbardye gatte a litle might.
1647 A. Cowley Wish in Mistress i Well then; I now do plainly see, This busie world and I shall ne're agree.
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Georgics iv, in tr. Virgil Wks. 123 For thy Bees a quiet Station find..And plant..Wild Olive Trees..before the buisy Shop. View more context for this quotation
1708 J. Swift Predict. for 1708 5 The Time that he enters Libra,..which is the busy Period of the Year.
a1774 A. Tucker Light of Nature (1777) IV. ii. 308 The hopes that tinsel the gay and busy hours of life.
1814 Ld. Byron Lara i. i. 5 Bright faces in the busy hall.
1871 J. Morley Crit. Misc. (1878) 1st Ser. 262 These remote heights apart from the busy world of men.
1925 Times 3 Mar. 19/6 The ‘Elephant [and Castle]’ was a busy traffic centre in the days of coaches.
1961 L. Mumford City in Hist. xv. 473 The strain of living..within sound of a busy motorway or airport.
1989 A. Aird 1990 Good Pub Guide 281 It [sc. a pub] gets busy at weekends.
1992 Financial Times of Canada 14 Nov. 1/2 Cineplex is entering the busy Christmas season.
2000 N. Hornby in N. Hornby Speaking with Angel 105 ‘You're in for a busy day,’ one of the others said.
6. In negative sense: active in what does not concern one; prying, inquisitive, gossiping; meddlesome, officious, interfering. Now somewhat archaic. Cf. busybody n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > doing > activity or occupation > acting in another's business or intervention > [adjective] > officious
busy1340
pragmatical1593
officious1596
polypragmatical1597
superfluous1598
pragmaticc1612
superserviceablea1616
polypragmatic1616
stickling1642
over-officious1647
polypragmonetic1693
managinga1715
busybodied1798
busybodyish1851
pantopragmatic1860
polypragmonic1866
polypragmosynic1886
1340 Ayenbite (1866) 58 (MED) Ine þo ydele wordes me zeneȝeþ..yef hi spekþ bisye wordes [etc.].
?a1425 (c1400) Mandeville's Trav. (Titus C.xvi) (1919) 196 Þei asked him [sc. Alisandre] whi he was so proud & so fierce & so besy for to putten all the world vnder his subiectioun.
c1475 Lerne or be Lewde (Harl. 5086) in Babees Bk. (2002) i. 9 To Bolde, ne to Besy, ne Bourde nat to large.
1574 J. Baret Aluearie B 1478 A Busie man a medler in all matters.
a1631 J. Donne Poems (1633) 169 Busie old foole, unruly Sunne, Why dost thou thus, Through windowes, and through curtaines call on us?
1679 Trials Green, Berry, & Hill for Murder of Sir E. Godfrey 14 He was a busie man, and..would do a great deal of mischief.
1747 S. Richardson Clarissa II. i. 5 A sort of fiddling, busy, yet..un-busy man.
1754 M. Delany Autobiogr. & Corr. (1862) 2nd Ser. III. 299 How that little busy, mischievous fiend, jealousy, torments the best minds sometimes.
1818 S. T. Coleridge Friend (new ed.) I. 157 A busy and inquisitorial tyranny.
1863 H. Grant Mariquita 142 [One] so young and beautiful—Could hardly hope to escape the busy talk Of idle neighbours.
1920 S. Lewis Main St. ii. viii. 98 A lot of old tabbies always busy criticizing.
2000 J. J. Connolly Layer Cake (2004) 111 ‘That's none of your business. Don't get busy, okay?’
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > doing > activity or occupation > occupy or engage (a person) [verb (transitive)] > engage in or busy oneself about > be fully occupied with
to be busy to doa1387
a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1872) IV. 453 (MED) Þe Est ȝate..was so hevy of sound bras þat twenty men were besy i-now for to tende it.
c1405 (c1385) G. Chaucer Knight's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 1584 Swich stryf..Bitwixe Venus..And Mars..That Iuppiter was bisy it to stente.
c1540 (?a1400) Destr. Troy 10388 Þe kyng..harmyt hym sore, Þat bisi was þe buerne to bide in his sadill.
8. † a. Of a thing: involving much work, care, or trouble; elaborate, intricate. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > effort or exertion > [adjective] > laborious or toilsome > accomplished with much labour
busy1448
laboured1566
elaborate1592
pumped1731
labour-intensive1928
1448 Will of Henry VI in R. Willis & J. W. Clark Archit. Hist. Univ. Cambr. (1886) I. 354 (MED) Curiouse werkes of entaille and besy moldyng.
1536 J. Husee Let. 27 Apr. in Lisle Papers (P.R.O.: SP 3/12/53) f. 59 It [sc. a cushion to be worked] wilbe very busy becawse of dyversyte of colorys.
1542 N. Udall tr. Erasmus Apophthegmes f. 51v Buisie and sumptuous buildynges.
1577 H. I. tr. H. Bullinger 50 Godlie Serm. II. iii. v. sig. Ff.ijv/2 The maner of consecrating them, is farre more large and busie.
1615 H. Crooke Μικροκοσμογραϕια 925 The History of the Bones is a busie piece of Worke.
b. In negative sense: (of a design, etc.) having much detail; excessively detailed or decorated; over-elaborate.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > painting and drawing > painting > qualities or styles of painting > [adjective] > other qualities or styles
plangent1666
dry1695
sticky1753
flat1755
spotty1798
touchy1809
definitive1815
edgy1825
painty1827
scratchy1827
unideal1838
tinglish1855
generalist1858
tinny1877
Christmas-cardy1883
tinty1883
surfacy1887
chocolate box1892
chocolate-boxy1894
Christmas card1895
juicy1897
candy box1898
pastose1901
busy1909
pompier1914
posterish1914
painterly1932
X-ray1940
illusional1942
all-over1948
figurative1960
hard-edge1961
1862 Civil Engineer & Architect's Jrnl. 25 94/2 The polygonal ribs of the trusses..are coloured with alternate lengths of red and blue..upon which a rather too..busy pattern is executed.
1876 Descriptive Catal. Bronzes South Kensington Museum 97 A certain..busy profusion of ornament agree also rather with the manner of that artist than with the more classic feeling of Verrocchio.
1909 Athenæum 1 May 535/3 His pictures..look a little ‘busy’, and ask to be displayed..with..reasonable relief of bare space.
1947 S. J. Perelman Acres & Pains xx. 119 They then they papered the bedroom with a busy pattern of satyrs and dryads.
1997 Canad. Geographic July 82/2 It is an opportunity to showcase rare..artifacts... Unfortunately, that opportunity is squandered by busy layouts.
2005 Independent 11 May (Property section) 7/1 If you have lots of ‘busy’ prints on fabrics and furnishings, change them for a few bold designs instead.
9. That indicates activity.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > doing > activity or occupation > [adjective] > that indicates activity or business
busy1611
1611 J. Donne Funerall Elegie in Anat. World sig. B8 The worlds busie noyse to ouercome.
1645 J. Milton L'Allegro in Poems 35 The busie humm of men.
1716 Lady M. W. Montagu Let. 3 Aug. (1965) I. 249 People with..busie faces.
1856 H. Mayhew Great World London ix. 129 The building assumed the busy aspect of a large factory.
1937 Amer. Home Apr. 115/1 The birds..seemed not the least concerned over its [sc. the windmill's] busy clatter.
1997 J. Ryan Dismantling Mr Doyle xii. 179 The bustle with which she passed milk jugs and sugar bowls created a busy din.
2005 A. Sage Magyk xviii. 183 After ten years of waking every day to the busy sounds of The Ramblings,..the silence was deafening.
Phrases
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > effort or exertion > exert oneself or make an effort [verb (intransitive)]
tillc897
stightlea1375
stretcha1375
wrestlea1382
to put it forthc1390
to put one's hand(s) to (also unto)a1398
paina1400
takea1400
to do one's busy pain (also care, cure, diligence)?a1430
to make great force?c1450
makec1485
to stir one's stumpsa1500
to bestir one's stumps1549
to make work1574
put1596
bestira1616
operate1650
to lay out1659
to be at pains1709
exerta1749
tew1787
maul1821
to take (the) trouble1830
to pull outc1835
bother1840
trouble1880
to buck up1890
hump1897
to go somea1911
the world > action or operation > manner of action > care, carefulness, or attention > care or heed [verb (intransitive)] > bestow care and effort
to do one's (busy) curea1400
paina1400
to do one's busy pain (also care, cure, diligence)?a1430
take1528
to be at pains1709
?a1430 T. Hoccleve Mother of God l. 108 in Minor Poems (1970) i. 55 Do your bysy peyne To wasshe away our cloudeful offense.
a1475 J. Russell Bk. Nurture (Harl. 4011) in Babees Bk. (2002) i. 199 My copy..whiche to drawe out [I] haue do my besy diligence.
c1503 R. Arnold Chron. f. lxxxxiv/1 This lytil yle..For to repayre do ay thy besy cure.
?1518 A. Barclay tr. D. Mancinus Myrrour Good Maners sig. B.iv Therfore dothe he study and muse with busy cure His dedes to redresse.
1554 D. Lindsay Dialog Experience & Courteour i. sig. E.i I sall do my besye cure To tak the best.
1633 P. Fletcher Purple Island x. xl. 144 A thousand Knights woo'd her with busie pain.
1673 J. Flavell Fountain of Life xxiii. 295 With busie diligence, to make himself ready for his death.
1692 J. Dryden Eleonora 19 Her fellow Saints with busie care, will look For her blest Name.
1737 H. Baker Medulla Poetarum Romanorum I. 101 And now the Warriors all with busy Care, Whet the dull Sword.
P2. (as) busy as a bee: very busy or industrious (and typically happily so); fully engaged with some occupation (cf. bee n.1 1b).
ΚΠ
c1405 (c1395) G. Chaucer Merchant/Franklin Link (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 4 For ay as bisy as bees Ben they [sc. women] vs sely men for to [de]ceyue.
1535 W. Stewart tr. H. Boethius Bk. Cron. Scotl. (1858) II. 445 Now ar tha maid als bissie as ane be.
1690 W. Walker Idiomatologia Anglo-Lat. 74 You are as busie as a bee.
a1788 N. Cotton Var. Pieces Verse & Prose (1791) I. 107 Thus four or five of us you'll see, And each as busy as a bee.
1866 Harper's Mag. Dec. 51/2 Throughout the day Frank was as busy as a bee,..and the roll of bills in his vest pocket biggened.
1995 P. McCabe Dead School (1996) 163 All the mammies were busy as bees chatting away and talking about all the little kiddies as Malachy came trotting in the school gates.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > sexual relations > sexual activity > engage in sexual activity with [verb (transitive)] > have sexual intercourse with
mingeOE
haveOE
knowc1175
ofliec1275
to lie with (or by)a1300
knowledgec1300
meetc1330
beliea1350
yknowc1350
touchc1384
deala1387
dightc1386
usea1387
takec1390
commona1400
to meet witha1400
servea1400
occupy?a1475
engender1483
jangle1488
to be busy with1525
to come in1530
visitc1540
niggle1567
mow1568
to mix one's thigh with1593
do1594
grind1598
pepper1600
yark1600
tumble1603
to taste of1607
compressc1611
jumble1611
mix?1614
consort?1615
tastea1616
bumfiddle1630
ingressa1631
sheet1637
carnal1643
night-work1654
bump1669
bumble1680
frig?c1680
fuck1707
stick1707
screw1719
soil1722
to do over1730
shag1770
hump1785
subagitatec1830
diddle1879
to give (someone) onec1882
charver1889
fuckeec1890
plugc1890
dick1892
to make a baby1911
to know (a person) in the biblical sense1912
jazz1920
rock1922
yentz1924
roll1926
to make love1927
shtupa1934
to give (or get) a tumble1934
shack1935
bang1937
to have it off1937
rump1937
tom1949
to hop into bed (with)1951
ball1955
to make it1957
plank1958
score1960
naughty1961
pull1965
pleasurea1967
to have away1968
to have off1968
dork1970
shaft1970
bonk1975
knob1984
boink1985
fand-
1525 in B. Cusack Everyday Eng. 1500–1700 (1998) 108 Looke well to yor awn seruauntis for..ther can noo woman goo theyr [sc. into the forest]..but they wilbe busy with them.
1612 W. Fennor Cornu-copiæ 27 Thou hast bene too busy with a man, And art with child.
1728 C. Cibber Vanbrugh's Provok'd Husband ii. i. 20 You would have the Impudence to Sup, and be busy with her.
1826 S. Reynolds Jrnl. 19 Aug. (1989) I. 148 She had given orders for Tuanou to be banished, for being busy with Tenow!
P4. to get busy. colloquial (originally U.S.).
a. To become active; to begin to act. Frequently in imperative phrases let's (also now, etc.) get busy.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > undertaking > beginning action or activity > begin action or activity [verb (intransitive)] > bestir oneself
arisec825
to start upc1275
stirc1275
shifta1400
awakea1450
to put out one's fins?1461
wake1523
to shake one's ears1580
rouse1589
bestira1616
awaken1768
arouse1822
waken1825
to wake snakes1835
roust1841
to flax round1884
to get busy1896
to get one's arse in gear1948
1896 Locomotive Oct. 157 The boys have no great love for the work, and one or more overseers stand over them constantly, urging them..to ‘get busy’.
1906 W. McCay Little Nemo in Slumberland 23 Sept. in Little Nemo 1905–1914 (2000) 58 Come on! You fellows get busy!.. Get a move on you!
1936 J. Steinbeck In Dubious Battle iii. 24 They'll give him the works if George doesn't get busy.
1987 I. Rankin Knots & Crosses xv. 78 Drop what you're doing and get busy on tracing this car.
1999 Maximum PC Oct. 14 Now get busy and write us.
2000 B. L. Whitford & K. Jones Accountability, Assessment, & Teacher Commitment iv. 79 ‘Okay, let's get busy.’ In less than a minute, Mary Jo has skillfully redirected the energy in the room.
b. euphemistic. To engage in amorous behaviour or sexual activity. Also with on, with (a person). Cf. to be busy with at Phrases 3.
ΚΠ
1969 B. Bremser Troia i. 62 Every once and awhile I am nudged by his drooping thigh to get busy on him also... I gag on his cock.
1970 in E. Cray Bawdy Ballads 10/2 Oh, daughter, oh, daughter, you were a silly fool, To get busy with a man With a tool like a mule.
1989 T. Williams Cocaine Kids 138 (Gloss.) A number of terms relate to sexual behavior, including..getting busy.
2000 Esquire July 123/2 Founded in 1916, when the pilot of a private, two-seater plane realised the new ‘autopilot’ left his hands free to get busy with his female co-pilot, the Mile High Club is still chalking up plenty of new recruits.
2010 M. D. Ewell To love Amari x. 172 ‘I can't get enough of you either! I love you so!’ We were getting busy when the phone rang.
Compounds
C1. Forming parasynthetic and complementary adjectives (in early use often with pejorative connotations: see sense 6, and cf. busybody n., busyhead n.2).† busy-headed adj. Obsolete
busy-brained adj.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > thought > [adjective]
weeningc1391
cogitative1490
busy-headeda1555
busy-brained1573
thinking1606
thoughtsome1627
cogitanta1680
1573 G. Gascoigne Disc. Aduentures Master F. I. in Hundreth Sundrie Flowres 279 Thou hast three such busie brayned sisters, as I thincke shortly their heads will breake.
1684 M. Wheeler tr. Plutarch Of Curiosity in M. Morgan et al. tr. Plutarch Morals II. vi. 167 Busy-brain'd people do so twist and turn themselves to every frivolous Show.
1867 Atlantic Monthly Nov. 577/1 Let us watch the habits of some of these busy-brained men, these great masters of the intellectual world.
2001 Sugar Feb. 117/3 A busy-brained person like you shouldn't spend so much time doing nothing.
busy-fingered adj.
ΚΠ
1604 J. Marston Malcontent v. iii. sig. H2v He is even one of the most busy fingerd lords.
1873 Once a Week 8 Nov. 415/2 These little pellets..grow dry and hard, ready for busy-fingered girls to wrap paper cases round them.
2001 Nat. Health Oct. 71/1 Busy-fingered fans cite its [sc. knitting's] therapeutic qualities as being the number one reason for loving the hobby.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > thought > [adjective]
weeningc1391
cogitative1490
busy-headeda1555
busy-brained1573
thinking1606
thoughtsome1627
cogitanta1680
a1555 N. Ridley in M. Coverdale Certain Lett. Martyrs (1564) 64 The deuiles Galtroppes that he casteth in our wayes by some of hys busye headed yonkers.
1583 P. Stubbes Second Pt. Anat. Abuses sig. I2 These busie heded astronomers, & curious serching astrologers.
1633 Costlie Whore iv. sig. F4v A plague upon this busie-headed rabble.
1737 E. Arrowsmith Duty of Following 8 Factious and busy-headed Men..are apt to ask, How much, and to what Degree, is this to be paid?
1856 H. Morley Jerome Cardan I. xiii. 254 Nicolo went off by no means easy in his mind. The secret was no longer his own, and Cardan was a busy-headed fellow.
busy-looking adj.
ΚΠ
1722 A. Pope Let. 10 Oct. in Literary Corr. (1735) I. 143 That idle, busy-looking Sanhedrin.
1803 M. Berry Jrnl. 12 May (1865) II. 248 Grenoble is a very cheerful, well-built, busy-looking town.
1915 H. S. Harrison Angela's Business xx. 287 ‘I hope’, the formal caller added, with a glance toward the busy-looking desk, ‘I'm not interrupting?’
2007 Pittsburgh Post-Gaz. (Nexis) 9 Aug. s1 He turned to the front door as a busy-looking woman answered.
busy-tongued adj.
ΚΠ
1530 G. Joye tr. Psalter of Dauid f. 223v Let nothynge prospere in therthe with this besy tonged & lyinge man.
1796 T. Townshend Summary Def. Edmund Burke i. 23 All that the most malignant busy-tongued calumny..could set in motion, have been impelled against..his public reputation.
1878 R. B. Smith Carthage 255 Busy-tongued rumour passed from mouth to mouth.
1993 I. Doig Heart Earth 17 The busy-tongued Ringer family.
C2.
busy idleness n. occupation or employment in trivial matters, idleness disguised as busyness; a tendency to engage in this; cf. busy-idle adj. 1.
ΚΠ
1592 G. Harvey Foure Lett. (new ed.) iii. 44 Some of our pens might haue bene employed to better vse, then this idle businesse, or rather busy idlenesse.
1684 T. Tryon Friendly Advice to Gentlemen-planters iii. 149 Your Bones shall presently pay for the busie Idleness of your Brains, and the Sauciness of your Tongue.
1781 E. Gibbon Decline & Fall III. xxvii. 13 The eager pursuit of religious controversy afforded a new occupation to the busy idleness of the metropolis.
1859 Once Week 23 July 75/1 A County History..affords its own sober enjoyment. It is busy idleness to doze over its records.
1921 National Engineer Sept. 445/3 The pains we take in books or arts which treat of things remote from the use of life, is a busy idleness.
1997 E. Kaufmann in C. Weedon Postwar Women's Writing in German 201 The destructive effects of the busy idleness and non-productivity that were gaining the upper hand.
busy idler n. a person or a thing employed in busy idleness.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > vigour or energy > [noun] > briskness or activeness > bustle or fuss > one who bustles or fusses > one who fusses about trifles
fidfad1754
niggler1781
busy idler1788
fiddle-faddler1846
1788 World 13 Dec. The Advertiser will make use of such precautions as will prevent either himself, or others, from being exposed to curious busy idlers.
1876 Primitive Methodist Mag. Jan. 34 The butterfly..is a busy idler, who lives on the sweets of the present as they may be gathered from flower to flower.
1917 W. Durant Philos. & Social Probl. 218 It is well that philosophy..should be scorned as a busy idler.
1995 P. M. Mitchell Johann Christoph Gottsched 78 A stock humorous character, the busy idler.
busy Lizzie n. the East African shrub Impatiens walleriana (family Balsaminaceae), having abundant, typically red, pink, or white spurred flowers, and whose various hybrids and cultivated varieties are widely grown as house or bedding plants.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > particular flower or plant esteemed for flower > [noun] > balsam and allied flowers
noli me tangere1563
balsam apple1578
touch-me-not1659
eagle-flower1718
balsam1736
quick-in-hand1744
Capuchin1756
balsamine1785
impatiens1785
jewelweed1817
snap-weed1823
lady's slipper1836
busy Lizzie1938
sultana1938
patient Lucy1940
policeman's helmet1950
1938 Spirit Lake Beacon (Iowa) 6 Oct. Louis Guritz brought a new plant for our room. Louis says it is a Busy Lizzie.
1956 X. Field House Plants 79 Impatiens..gathered nicknames, and among them were Patient Lucy, Patience Plant or just Busy Lizzie.
1970 Woman's Own 21 Mar. 23/1 The table where the variegated busy lizzie fought for living-space with the telephone.
2005 Gardenlife Oct. 72/2 Hanging baskets planted with busy Lizzies are a traditional favourite.
busy tone n. originally U.S. a sound indicating to a caller that a telephone line is engaged (cf. sense 2b).
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > telecommunication > telegraphy or telephony > telephony > [noun] > signals or tones
call signal1853
telephone call1878
tone1878
ring-off1885
busy tone1902
buzz1913
dialling tone1917
dial tone1920
ringtone1921
ringing tone1922
pip1929
pip-pip-pip1936
logatom1937
pay-tone1958
ringtone1984
1902 Electr. World & Engineer 11 Oct. 383/2 If Y is busy both relay coils receive current and the relay fails, the busy tone being supplied to X through the back contacts.
1914 W. Atkins Princ. Automatic Teleph. 27 If all the lines are engaged the wipers will rotate to this busy-tone circuit.
1978 D. Goines Crime Partners 148 He finally found the dime, dropped the coin in the box, and dialed the number... He got a busy tone.
2002 M. Talbot-Smith Audio Engineer's Ref. Bk. § 6.9 [The] busy tone is returned..when the wanted party is engaged on another call and this has given the tone its alternative name ‘engaged tone’.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2012; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
busyv.
/ˈbɪzi/, U.S. /ˈbɪzi/ 1.
a. transitive (reflexive). To occupy (oneself) in an active way; to keep or make (oneself) busy with (also in, about, †mid, †on) or doing something (now often some trivial, mechanical, or unnecessary task that serves as a temporary focus). Formerly also with infinitive.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > doing > activity or occupation > occupy or busy oneself [verb (reflexive)]
busyOE
frequent?a1562
employ1578
OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 2nd Ser. (Cambr. Gg.3.28) xxvi. 237 Se man bið herigendlic ðe mid godum weorcum hine sylfne bysgað.
c1390 in C. Brown Relig. Lyrics 14th Cent. (1924) 149 Bisy þe her bale to blynne.
a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) iv. l. 1183 Bot besien hire on other thinges.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) l. 23048 Þat..bisieden hem to pleisen hym.
1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 895 My self..whiche..have besyed me..to teche..many..princes and princesses.
c1540 (?a1400) Destr. Troy 9306 Achilles..to bryng hit aboute besit hym sore.
a1613 T. Bodley Life (1647) 15 I could not busy my selfe to better purpose, then by reducing that place..to the publique use of Students.
1655 T. Fuller Church-hist. Brit. ii. 88 He busied himself in Toyes and Trifles.
1736 Bp. J. Butler Analogy of Relig. ii. vii. 254 To how little Purpose those Persons busy themselves.
1796 Bp. R. Watson Apol. for Bible 209 You have merely busied yourself in exposing to vulgar contempt a few unsightly shrubs.
1838 E. Bulwer-Lytton Alice I. iii. vii. 300 Mrs. Hare..went to the window, and busied herself with a flower-stand in the recess.
1856 E. K. Kane Arctic Explor. II. ii. 33 Petersen began..to busy himself with his wardrobe.
1887 E. C. Wilson New Test. Parables for Children 50 All day, as she busied herself about her work, she thought of her wild little guest.
1912 ‘Saki’ Unbearable Bassington ii. 35 Comus busied himself with the exact position of a chair planted out in the middle of the floor.
1955 W. S. Burroughs Let. 12 Jan. (1993) 255 When I don't have inspiration for the novel, I busy myself with hack work.
2001 S. Brett Death on Downs (2002) vi. 44 In the kitchen Carole busied herself finding corkscrew and glasses.
b. transitive. To keep (someone or something) busy in this way; to occupy (a person, the hands, the mind, etc.) with some activity.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > doing > activity or occupation > occupy or engage (a person) [verb (transitive)]
busyeOE
busyOE
occupya1325
exercisec1384
employ1477
embusy1485
to hold (also keep) in play1548
exerce1584
engage1648
to tie up1887
eOE King Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care (Hatton) (1871) xxviii. 191 Se æmetiga & se anlipa is to manianne ðæt he ðæt he sua micle sorgfulra sie ymb hine selfne.., sua hine læs oðerra monna giemen bisegað [L. quanto eos aliena cura non implicat].
lOE King Ælfred tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (Bodl.) (2009) I. Pref. 239 For þam..manigfealdum wordum and bisgum [read woruldbisgum] þe hine oft ægðer ge on mode ge on lichoman bisgodan.
a1500 Ratis Raving (Cambr. Kk.1.5) l. 1530 in R. Girvan Ratis Raving & Other Early Scots Poems (1939) 43 Thar propre accioune..Wyll besy thaim.
1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 455/2 I bysye my body.
1587 Sir P. Sidney & A. Golding tr. P. de Mornay Trewnesse Christian Relig. i. 8 Thou..busiest all thy wits about it.
1690 W. Temple Miscellanea II. iv. 29 Before the Discourses..of Philosophers began to busie..the Græcian Wits.
1724 J. Swift Let. to Molesworth 4 To busie my Head and my Hands to the Loss of my Time.
1791 tr. J. G. Zimmermann Solitude Considered v. 262 The want of some pursuit to interest the passions, to busy the imaginations, and to employ the faculties.
1845 Douglas Jerrold's Shilling Mag. 1 291 These thoughts were busying the mind of St. Giles.
1871 R. Ellis tr. Catullus Poems xl. 5 Wouldst thou busy the breath of half the people?
1914 Gilded Chrysalis ii. 55 She busied her fingers with the cups and the sugar-tongs.
2010 W. G. Regier Quotology 103 The reformation of pagan poetry into Christian texts busied the eminent.
c. transitive. In passive. To be occupied or kept busy, esp. with (in, †mid) or doing something.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > doing > activity or occupation > occupy or engage (a person) [verb (transitive)]
busyeOE
busyOE
occupya1325
exercisec1384
employ1477
embusy1485
to hold (also keep) in play1548
exerce1584
engage1648
to tie up1887
OE Riddle 73 8 Nu eom mines frean folme bysigo [d] .
OE Ælfric Lives of Saints (Julius) (1881) I. 18 Þonne heo [sc. seo sawul] smeað be anum þing, ne mæg heo þa hwyle be oðrum þinge smeagen, ac biþ gebysgod [c1175 Bodl. 343 ibysgad] mid þam anum ðinge oðþæt þæt geþoht gewyte, and oðer cume.
OE Ælfric's Colloquy (1991) 19 Occupatus sum lectionibus et cantu : ic eom bysgod & on sange.
?1518 A. Barclay Fyfte Eglog sig. A.iii They haue great pleasure supposynge well to dyne Whan men ben busyed in kyllynge of fat swyne.
1526 W. Bonde Pylgrimage of Perfection ii. sig. Qi Be thou neuer more than nedeth..busyed or troubled in the defautes or offences of other.
1569 J. Sanford tr. H. C. Agrippa Of Vanitie Artes & Sci. xlvii. f. 61v Idle men busied in letters, pointes, and numbers.
1623 J. Bingham tr. Xenophon Hist. 85 That the enemie might be busied on all sides.
1671 J. Beale Let. 13 Nov. in R. Boyle Corr. (2001) IV. 222 Sir W St is nowe, or lately was, in London, busied in a Lawsuite.
1758 S. Johnson Idler 6 May 33 Every tongue is busied in sollicitation.
1797 Posthumous Daughter II. lxiv. 132 We are busied in house-hunting, and have seen several.
1803 M. Lewis Jrnl. 23 Nov. in Jrnls. Lewis & Clark Exped. (1986) 106 The Comdt. was busied..in settling the disputes which had arisen.
1868 E. Edwards Life Sir W. Ralegh I. xviii. 361 Ralegh was busied..with his official duties.
1932 ‘L. G. Gibbon’ Sunset Song ii. 126 Chae Strachan..was busied letting a strainer into the ground.
1994 F. Carraro Jerry Bywaters 208 The staff was busied with a lengthy lecture series.
d. transitive. To occupy (time) fully. rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > spending time > spend time or allow time to pass [verb (transitive)] > in some activity
spenda1300
addict1604
busy1629
to put in1863
do1897
1629 J. Ford Lovers Melancholy i. 6 Him..whose study Had busied many houres.
1781 W. Ogilvie Ess. Right of Prop. in Land ii. i. 66 Those warlike preparations which busied the last years of his master's reign.
1802 W. Taylor Let. 30 Nov. in J. W. Robberds Mem. W. Taylor (1843) I. 431 Two elections..which busied time and idea.
1920 M. Borden Romantic Woman 191 The little stupid activities that busied my days held for me a certain inverted pleasure.
2002 D. R. Bright Murder had E Card xvii. 163 Betsy busied her time earning extra money for the family.
a. transitive. To trouble the body (only in Old English) or the mind; to afflict, worry, disturb, perplex. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > suffering > state of being upset or perturbed > worry > worry about [verb (transitive)] > cause worry to
busyeOE
fretc1290
exercise1531
to lead, rarely give (a person) a dancea1545
pingle1740
potter1763
fidget1785
worrit1818
worry1822
bite1909
disquieten1921
to stress out1983
eOE Metres of Boethius (transcript of damaged MS) (2009) xxii. 30 Þæs lichoman leahtras and hefignes and unþeawas oft bysigen monna modsefan..mid þære yflan oforgiotolnesse.
OE Whale 51 Þonne hine on holme hungor bysgað ond þone aglæcan ætes lysteþ, ðonne se mereweard muð ontyneð, wide weleras.
OE Paris Psalter (1932) cv. 25 Þær Moyses wearð mægene gebysgad [L. vexatus] for heora yfelum.
a1400 Psalter (Vesp.) xvii. 6 in C. Horstmann Yorkshire Writers (1896) II. 148 (MED) Soreghes vmgafe me..Bisied me snares ofe dede ful felle.
c1400 (?c1380) Pearl l. 268 & busyez þe aboute a raysoun bref.
a1425 J. Wyclif Sel. Eng. Wks. (1869) I. 13 (MED) It is no nede to bisie us what hiȝt Tobies hound.
1581 Apol. or Def. Prince William sig. C Nor yet to deceaue [him] by promises, nor yet busie him with vaine and vncertaine hopes.
1591 Troublesome Raigne Iohn i. sig. G That were to busie men with doubts.
1621 G. Wither Motto (new ed.) sig. E5v I care not, though, there eu'ry houre, should be Some outward discontent to busie me.
b. transitive. To disturb, agitate (water). Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > motion in specific manner > irregular movement or agitation > agitate [verb (transitive)]
weigha1000
dreveOE
ruska1300
commovec1374
to-stira1382
busy?c1400
tormenta1492
squalper?1527
toss1557
jumble1568
buskle1573
agitate1599
disturb1599
to work up1615
vex1627
conturbate1657
jerry-mumble1709
rejumble1755
jerrycummumble1785
reesle1903
?c1400 (c1380) G. Chaucer tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (BL Add. 10340) (1868) i. met. ii. l. 12 Þe causes whennes þe sounyng wyndes..bisien þe smoþe water of þe see.
3. intransitive. To be busy; to occupy oneself, esp. with or about (something). Now rare.Formerly also: †to take trouble (obsolete).
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > doing > activity or occupation > be occupied or busy (in or at something) [verb (intransitive)]
playOE
wendc1325
wallowc1380
busyc1384
plya1393
walka1400
stickle1566
to ply it1582
bebusied1603
to work overtime1938
OE tr. Apollonius of Tyre (1958) i. 2 He ða on ðare manfullan scilde abisgode and þa ongeanwinnendan fæmnan mid micelre strengðe earfoðlice ofercom.]
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Luke x. 40 Martha bisyede aboute moche seruyce.
c1400 (?c1390) Sir Gawain & Green Knight (1940) l. 1066 Naf I now to busy bot bare þre dayeȝ.
c1450 (c1430) Brut (Galba) (1908) 428 The Kynge..busied sore to gete this towne and Castell.
a1500 (?c1450) Merlin xiii. 201 Oon part bisied for the rescew.
1573 G. Harvey Schollers Loove in Let.-bk. (1884) 132 Chaos, whereon I bussid over longe.
1582 S. Batman Vppon Bartholome, De Proprietatibus Rerum 201 b/2 Euery part [of the earth]..busieth with his owne weight to come to the middle of ye earth.
1889 G. A. Henty Pike & Dyke 77 If she were to come over here..she would, while busying about you, have less time to brood over her griefs.
1902 N. Anderson Added Upon ii. i. 30 ‘I've kept your supper warm,’ said his mother, as she busied with the table.
2002 W. Boyd Any Human Heart 83 She busied about: taking my damp coat and spreading it over a chair, brewing up a fresh pot of tea.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2012; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
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n.1OE
n.21601
adj.eOE
v.eOE