busily
Americanadverb
adverb
Other Word Forms
- nonbusily adverb
- overbusily adverb
- superbusily adverb
- unbusily adverb
Etymology
Origin of busily
First recorded in 1175–1225, busily is from the Middle English word bisiliche. See busy, -ly
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In the midst of Belém’s COP30 bedlam, environmentalists, economists, lobbyists and diplomats busily haggle at the global climate conference about what we can and cannot get away with in negotiations over Mother Nature.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 19, 2025
On Wednesday, residents of Cebu's most-affected areas were busily cleaning up streets that had been rivers less than 24 hours earlier.
From Barron's • Nov. 6, 2025
The unsettling data comes as Australia battles a slump in productivity and falling living standards, with the Labor government now busily examining reform options to tune up the economy and reverse its sliding fortunes.
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 16, 2025
They managed to win the last presidential election and form a majority in the legislature and are now busily enacting their agenda.
From Salon • May 5, 2025
He is busily working on his Monet show, writing to Jo, reading her letters, the two of them flirting by post.
From "Vincent and Theo: The Van Gogh Brothers" by Deborah Heiligman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
