Busyness: Definition and Meaning

Busyness is the state of being busy. Today, we’re taking a closer look at the definition of busyness, along with several examples of how to use busyness in a sentence.

Busyness Definition

Busyness is a noun that refers to the state of being busy. To understand the word busyness, we need to understand what the root word busy means.

Busy means to be actively engaged in some activity. It comes from the middle English bisy.

When we add -ness to a word, we create a noun that refers to a condition of existence. In this case, the condition is being engaged in a task or activity.

Some synonyms of busyness include engagement and industriousness.

Unlike the word business, busyness is pronounced with emphasis on the Y syllable. Busyness is pronounced: biz-ee-ness.

Busyness Meaning

There’s a more nuanced definition of busyness. It’s not always just the state of actively doing something. It often refers to meaningless activity.

In this sense, busyness is akin to the phrase “busy work.” Busyness can mean a condition where there is much to do, but none of it is necessarily important.

An example of this meaning of busyness include when a teacher gives unnecessary worksheets just to keep students occupied.

It might mean tedious tasks like organizing the files on your computer or cleaning out your email inbox while waiting on the end of the workday.

Sometimes, busyness can refer to having too many details, especially visual details.

In this case, busyness is a synonym for cluttered or clashing, as in patterns of fabrics, for example, mixing houndstooth pillows with a plaid blanket. In these cases, busyness refers to something that is overwhelming to the eyes.

Correct Spelling of Busyness (and Misspellings to Avoid)

It’s important to spell busyness correctly. The correct way to spell this word is to combine the root word busy with the suffix -ness.

A common misspelling of busyness is business, but this word has a completely different meaning. Don’t confuse the two! If you’re referring to the state of being busy, make sure you spell the word with a Y.

Some people might spell busyness phonetically. The S in busyness sounds like a Z. But don’t spell it as buzyness, buzzyness, or buziness.

Avoid misspellings in your writing with ProWritingAid’s free grammar checker. It detects word mix-ups, such as writing business instead of busyness, and suggests corrections.

Examples of Busyness in Sentences

Let’s check out some examples of busyness in sentences.

• My science class is all busyness and not enough genuine learning.
• All the busyness in the world couldn’t distract me from the terrible news.
• I’m so tired of all this busyness—I need a vacation.
• The busyness of her weekend left her no time to rest before work.
• They didn’t like the busyness of the floral wallpaper.
• His constant busyness is how he avoids dealing with his grief.
• She rejected the magazine designs because of too much busyness and not enough white space.
• We can’t wait to relax after the busyness of the holidays.

If the word busyness has always confused you, you can now add this word to your vocabulary with the correct meaning, spelling, and usage.

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