business, n. Forms: α.

Old English bisignisse (Northumbrian, accusative), Middle English bessynes, Middle English besynese, Middle English beysones, Middle English bisenes, Middle English bisenesse, Middle English bissinesse, Middle English bissinusse, Middle English bisynesse, Middle English bysenesse, Middle English bysynysse, Middle English–1500s besiness, Middle English–1500s besyness, Middle English–1500s bissynes, Middle English–1500s bisynes, Middle English– 1500s bysinesse, Middle English–1500s bysynes, Middle English–1500s bysynesse, Middle English–1600s besenes, Middle English–1600s besines, Middle English–1600s besinesse, Middle English–1600s besynes, Middle English–1600s besynesse, Middle English–1600s bisines, Middle English–1600s bisiness, Middle English–1600s bisinesse, Middle English–1600s busines, Middle English–1600s businesse, Middle English–1600s busynes, Middle English–1600s busyness, Middle English–1600s busynesse, Middle English–1600s bysines, Middle English– business, 1500s bessyness, 1500s besunys, 1500s buseness, 1500s businis, 1500s busynez, 1500s buysenes, 1500s buysynes, 1500s–1600s bissines, 1500s–1600s buisines, 1500s–1600s buisinesse, 1500s–1600s busenes, 1500s–1600s bussines, 1500s–1600s bussinesse, 1500s–1700s buysines, 1600s bessines, 1600s beusenes, 1600s bissens, 1600s bissiness, 1600s biusines, 1600s buisiness, 1600s buissines, 1600s busienes, 1600s busieness, 1600s bussiness, 1600s busynese, 1600s (1700s–1800s regional and nonstandard) buzziness; Scottish pre-1700 beisines, pre-1700 beseynes, pre-1700 besienes, pre-1700 besinace, pre-1700 besinas, pre-1700 besines, pre-1700 bessines, pre-1700 besynes, pre-1700 besynesse, pre-1700 bisines, pre-1700 bisiness, pre-1700 bissenes, pre-1700 bissienes, pre-1700 bissines, pre-1700 bissynes, pre-1700 byssenes, pre-1700 byssyenes, pre-1700 byssynes, pre-1700 bysynes. β. 1500s–1600s buisnes, 1500s–1600s busnes, 1500s–1600s busnesse, 1600s besnes, 1600s beysnes, 1600s bisnies, 1600s bisnis, 1600s biusnes, 1600s buishnesse, 1600s busnis, 1600s buysnes, 1600s–1700s bisnes, 1600s–1700s buis'ness, 1600s–1700s buissness, 1600s–1700s bus'ness, 1700s–1800s buisness; Scottish pre-1700 bissnes, pre-1700 bissness, pre-1700 byssnes.

Frequency (in current use): Origin: Formed within English, by derivation. Etymons: BUSy adj., - .[SS suffix. Etymology: < BUSy adj. + - .[SS suffix. Compare BUSyT.I n. and BUSy n. Disyllabic pronunciation, reflecting syncope of the unstressed second syllable of trisyllabic forms, is indicated by spellings without a medial vowel (β. forms) from the 16th cent. and is noted by orthoepists from the early 17th cent. (see further E. J. Dobson Eng. Pronunc. 1500–1700 (ed. 2, 1968) II. §306). For the pronunciation and spelling variation in the first syllable see discussion at BUSy adj.

It is unlikely that there is any connection between this word and A nglo-Norman bosognes , besognes , busuines , etc. (plural) in the sense ‘affairs, business’, although it is possible that the two words were occasionally associated with one another. With to give business to at Phrases 3 compare classical Latin operam dare. †I. The quality or state of being busy. Obsolete. U sed from M iddle English down to the 18th cent., but now differentiated as BUSy.[SS n. (with trisyllabic pronunciation).

Later examples with spelling business which approximate to senses in this branch are usually extended from or influenced by branch II., and hence belong there. OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. (headings to readings) xx Nec sollicitudinem escæ et uestis habendam sed regnum dei omnibus præferendum docet : ne bisignisse mettes & woedes hæbende ah ric godes allum fore læras. a1400 (▸a1325) Cursor Mundi (V esp.) l. 14105 ‘M artha, M artha’ ..‘In mikel bisenes ert þou’. a1425 (▸c1384) Bible (Wycliffite, E.V .) (C orpus Oxf.)

(1850) Ezek. xii. 19 Thei shulen eete her breed in bisynes [L. solicitudine]. c1475 (▸?c1451) Bk. Noblesse (Royal) (1860) 3 Put away thoughte and gret pensifnes ..and besinesse. 1526 Bible (Tyndale) Gal. v. 17 From hence forth, let no man put me to busynes. 1574 St. Avstens Manuell in Certaine Prayers S. Augustines Medit. sig. Rvij Leaue of thyne owne businesses..and with draw thy selfe from thy trouble some thoughtes. 1611 Second Maiden's Trag.

(1909) T . ii. 9 M y thinckes the deposde kinge yo brothers sorrowe Should finde yo busines ynoughe. 1340 Ayenbite (1866) 56 H uyche bysinesse hi doþ to þan þet hare metes by wel agrayþed. c1350 (▸a1333) W TLLTAM ‘F S H‘‘[HAM Poems (1902) 88 Þat he healde hy [sc. the commandments] Wyþ al hys bysynysse. c1450 (▸a1400) Orologium Sapientiæ in Anglia (1888) 10 329 (MED) Þis hit is þat I haue longe-tyme ..with alle myne bisynesse sowht. 1509 S. H Aw[S Pastime of Pleasure xiv. xiv In vayne they spende their besynes. ?1515 W. H A‘‘T.IT‘. Commendations of Matrimony sig.

D.iv The wyues .. duty is to haue all the labour ..and busynes aboutes theyr chyldren as longe as they ben of tendre age. Pronunciation: Brit. /ˈbɪznᵻs/, U.S. /ˈbɪznᵻs/, /ˈbɪznᵻz/ 1 1. A nxiety, solicitude, care; distress, uneasiness. Obsolete. v r u 2. Diligent labour, exertion, effort. Obsolete. Earliest in to do (one'

s) business at Phrases 3; see also to give business to at Phrases 3. Oxford English Dictionary | The definitive record of the English language

▸ a1387 J. T ‘[ETSA tr. R. H igden Polychron. (St. John's C ambr.)

(1865) I. 5 By grete besynesse of þe writers of cronicles. a1425 (▸a1325) Cursor Mundi (Galba) l. 28748 (MED) Fasting and gude bisines Gers a man fle lustes of fless. ?c1430 (▸c1400) J. W yCLTF Eng. Wks. (1880) 60 C ristis bysynesse in prechynge. c1500 (▸a1449) J. L y[IAT[ Isopes Fabules (Trin. C ambr.) l. 137 in Minor Poems

(1934) TT . 571 (MED) Thryft commeþ of vertuous besynesse. c1550 Complaynt Scotl. (1979) 1 Distitute of ..al verteus bysynes of body ande saul. 1611 Bible (King James) Rom. xii. 11 Not slouthfull in busines [1881 Rev. Vers. in diligence not slothful] . 1696 E. S TTLLT.IFL[[T 12 Serm. ETTT. 349 A pprehensive ..not so much from the business of our enemies. 1713 T. P A‘.[LL in Guardian 21 A pr. 2/1 Behold the Raptures which a Writer knows ..Behold his Business while he works the M ine. ▸ a1387 J. T ‘[ETSA tr. R. H igden Polychron. (St. John's C ambr.)

(1869) II. 159 (MED) V plondisshe men ..fondeþ wiþ greet besynesse for to speke Frensce, for to be i-tolde of. c1390 Cato's Distichs (V ernon) 333 in F. J. Furnivall Minor Poems Vernon MS

(1901) TT . 580 Envye, wiþ gret bisinesse Beo-þenk þe forte fleo. c1400 in T. F. Simmons Lay Folks Mass Bk. (1879) 122 Þorouȝ besynesse of preyers. c1450 J. C API‘AE[ Life St. Augustine (1910) 16 Than sent sche praieres on-to heuene with gretter bisinesse. 1538 Prymer in Eng. after Vse of Sarum sig. Ivij M ake me, accordynge to my busynes Partener of thy..glory endles. 5. Fuss, ado. C f. sense 12b at branch II. ▸ a1387 J. T ‘[ETSA tr. R. H igden Polychron. (St. John's C ambr.)

(1871) III. 449 (MED) [H e] aleyde þis sorwe unneþe wiþ grete besynesse. c1450 (▸c1375) G. C HAUC[‘ Anelida & Arcite (Fairf. 16) (1878) l. 99 Ful mykel besynesse H ad he er that he myght his lady wynne. 1528 W. T y.[AL[ Obed. Christen Man f. xxxv What busynes had he to pacyfie his childerne? 1599 R. B ‘[[.HAM in R. H akluyt Princ. Navigations (new ed.) II. T. 100 I had no small businesse to cause my mariners to venture. 1693 J. L ‘CK[ Some Thoughts conc. Educ. §157 H is learning to read should be made as little Trouble or Business to him as might be. 1514 L [ . M ‘U.TJ‘y in J. Strype Eccl. Memorials

(1721) I. T. 9 H e feared that if they had not their pardons in likewise, they would either make business or they would avoid. 1526 Bible (Tyndale) M att. xxvii. f. xlj When Pilate sawe ..that moare busenes [1611 a tumult] was made. 1533 Fabyans Cronycle (new ed.) II. f. ccxxx For whose goodes was besynesse bytwen the kynges amner and the sheryffe. 1560 J. D AUS tr. J. Sleidane Commentaries f. cccxlii One of the Sergeaunts..made a busines with him as though he would haue caried him to pryson. 1577 R. H ‘LT.SH[[ Hist. Scotl. 65/2 in Chron.

I H erevpon was A rgadus sent forth ..with a power to appease that businesse. ▸ a1398 J. T ‘[ETSA tr. Bartholomaeus A nglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL A dd. 27944)

(1975) I. E. xxxvi. 237 The herte hatte cor ..of cura ‘besines’, for þerin [is] al besines and cause of wit and of konnynge. a1425 (▸c1395) Bible (Wycliffite, L.V .) (Royal)

(1850) Ecclus. xli. 15 H aue thou bisynesse [L. curam habe] of a good name. a1475 Bk. Curtasye (Sloane 1986) l. 331 in Babees Bk.

(2002) T . 309 Whil any man spekes with grete besenes, H erken his wordis. 1504 Rolls of Parl.: Henry VII (Electronic ed.) Parl. Jan. 1504 §11. m. 9 Takyng uppon theym the charge and besynes for the assessyng of the seid somme. ?1529 R. H y‘[[ tr. J. L. V ives Instr. Christen Woman TTT . ii. sig. q.iii A ll these busynes, as kepynge of the corce. a1398 (▸a1349) R. R ‘LL[ Commandm. of Love (Rawl.) in C . H orstmann Yorkshire Writers

(1895) I. 66 For to trauaile þare-aboute, is outrageous besenesse, þat he [sc. Jesus] forbedeth. c1500 (▸?a1437) Kingis Quair (1939) clv (MED) The lytill squerell, full of besyness. 1616 G. M A‘KHAM tr. C . Estienne et al. Maison Rustique (rev. ed.) ETT . xxii. 681 The businesse of his [sc. a dog's] taile. 1674 N. F AT‘FAX Treat. Bulk & Selvedge 11 The bulkiness of the world, the business of motion. 3. A pplication or commitment to a task or purpose; industry, diligence. Obsolete. 4. Eagerness, earnestness, importunity. Obsolete. a . Trouble, difficulty. Obsolete. v b.

Disturbance, commotion; (also) an instance of this. Obsolete. v 6. C are, attention, observance. Obsolete. v 7. A ctivity, briskness, motion; = BUSy.[SS n. Obsolete. 8. M ischievous or interfering activity; prying, officiousness. Obsolete (but cf. sense 16b).

a1466 in Paston Lett. & Papers

(2004) II. 320 A l by her awne bessynes of her tung. 1528 T. M ‘‘[ Dialogue Heresyes TTT , in Wks. 212/1 Faccious wayes full of busynes. a1586 S T‘ P. S T[.[y Arcadia

(1590) TTT . xxiii. sig. X x1 O noble Sisters.. now you be gone ..what is left in that sex, but babling, and businesse? II. Something with which a person is busy or occupied. 9. ▸ a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V .) (Douce 369(1))

(1850) Eccles. iv. 4 Eft I beheeld alle the trauailis of men, and the besynesses [a1425 L.V. bisynesses]. c1475 (▸?c1400) Apol. Lollard Doctr. (1842) 77 (MED) Now al most is no worldly bysines þat ministres of þe auter are not inplied in. ?a1500 (▸?1458) in J. H . Parker Some Acct. Domest. Archit.

(1859) III. ii. 41 (MED) A nother blissed besines is brigges to make. 1535 Bible (C overdale) 2 Tim. ii. 4 No man that warreth tangleth him selfe with worldly busynesses. 1659 S. C ‘A[‘CK Knowl. & Pract. 171 Removing our hearts from our prayers to our worldly businesses and occasions. 1725 D. D [F‘[ Compl. Eng. Tradesman I. v. 57 Trade ..ought to be follow'd as one of the great businesses of life. 1780 W. C ‘wP[‘ Poems 338 The world, with all its ..customs and its businesses A re no concern at all of his. 1853 A . J.

M ‘‘‘TS Relig. & Business (title page) Wherever religion is a business, there will business be a religion. 1899 Catholic University Bull. Oct. 482 We..are thrown into the cares, distractions and businesses of the world. c1405 (▸c1390) G. C HAUC[‘ Melibeus (H engwrt) (2003) §621 H e þ ..casteth hym to no bisynesse ne ocupacioun shal falle in to pouerte. ?a1425 Chron. Papacy l. 13 in Jrnl. Eng. & Germanic Philol. (1942) 41 175 Þe chirche of Rome bigan to .. gate more of seculer bisenesse ..þan of gostly deuocion. 1532 T. M ‘‘[ Confut. Tyndale in Wks. 826/1 Occupied in honorable businesse. 1600 C . P [‘Cy in C . M .

Ingleby & L. T. Smith Shakespeare's Cent. Prayse (1879) 38 Pestred with contrie businesse. 1653 I. W ALT‘. Compl. Angler Ep. Ded. 3 To give rest to your mind, and devest your self of your more serious business . 1748 L [ . C H[ST[‘FT[L[ Let. 16 Feb. (1932) (modernized text) III. 1102 I, who have been behind the scenes, both of pleasure and business. 1772 F. B U‘.[y Early Jrnls. & Lett.

(1988) I. 205 A ll Day I (a)m fagging at business—then in the evening I begin to live. 1836 H . T AyL‘‘ Statesman xi. 79 It were to be wished that he should set apart from business ..a sabbatical hour in each day. 1857 C . H [AEyS[I[ Saul (1869) 141 Business still should alternate with pleasure. 1918 H . H Ay[.S Lords of Air 41 I was not joy-riding, but bent on serious business. 2000 L. B AISHAw[ For all Wrong Reasons (2003) xxxix. 339 M ichael looked at her with his dark eyes ... ‘This is business, not personal. I don't mix the two.’ 1707 J.

M ‘‘TTM[‘ Whole Art Husbandry 153 Let them [sc. horses] be well kept, and then you may expect business from them. 1740 H . B ‘ACK[. Farriery Improv'd (ed. 2) II. v. 104 A H orse which eats only a moderate Quantity of Food, will do as much Business ..[as] one that eats continually. 1809 W. P TTT Gen. View Agric. Leics. 267 The old Leicestershire rams..will..continue to perform an almost unlimited quantity of business, to nine, ten, even twelve years old. 1825 J. C . L ‘U[‘. Encycl. Agric. 961 The bulls ..if good stock-getters are kept on as long as they will do business. 1836 Mechanics' Mag.

Dec. 316/2 Four horses will thresh three hundred bushels ... One horse will do good business with the $25 machine. 10. c1400 J. G ‘w[‘ Eng. Wks.

(1901) II. 226 Thogh the heved of holy chirche.. Ne do noght al his hole businesse..to sette pes and love. c1405 (▸c1395) G. C HAUC[‘ Clerk's Tale (H engwrt) (2003) l. 1015 To the yate is she went ..to greete the M arkysesse A nd after that dooth forth hir bisynesse. c1430 (▸c1386) G. C HAUC[‘ Legend Good Women (C ambr. Gg.4.27) (1879) l. 1719 Bad hire seruauntis don hire besynesse. c1515 L [ . B [‘.[‘S tr. Bk.

Duke Huon of Burdeux (1882–7) lviii. 199 It behoueth vs shortely to determyne oure besynes..I shall shew you what is best for vs ii to do. 1611 Bible (King James) Gen. xxxix. 11 Ioseph went in to the house, to doe his busines . v †a . A pursuit or occupation demanding time and attention; a serious employment as distinguished from a pastime. Obsolete. Later merging into specific sense at 13b. b. A s a mass noun: action which occupies time and demands attention and effort; esp. serious occupation or work, as opposed to pleasure or recreation (cf. PL[ASU‘[ n. 1c). t †c. Work done by an animal. Obsolete. a .

With possessive adjective or genitive: a task appointed or undertaken; a person's duty, part, or role (frequently to do something); function, occupation. See also to make it one's business at Phrases 9.

a1680 S. B UTL[‘ Genuine Remains

(1759) I. 95 Love's Business is to love, and to enjoy. 1709 R. S T[[L[ Tatler No. 18. ⁋1 Because a Thing is every Body's Business, it is no Body's Business. 1711 C . L ‘CKy[‘ Acct. Trade India 108 Every Factory had formerly a C ompradore, whose Business it was to buy in Provisions. 1801 M . E [I[w‘‘TH Forester in Moral Tales I. 173 It is our business to keep the room aired and swept. 1878 T. H . H UXL[y Physiography (ed. 2) 183 The great business of the sea is ..eating away the margin of the coast. 1921 Domest.

Engin. 8 Jan. 66/1 These men [sc. druggists] said that their business was to fill prescriptions and nothing else. 2001 J. S. S HTE[‘S Leadership & Groups in Recreational Service xx. 257 The supervisor need not have .. experience of all the difficulties ... H is or her business is to consult, analyze, explain. a1413 (▸c1385) G. C HAUC[‘ Troilus & Criseyde (Pierpont M organ)

(1881) TT . l. 1174 Of hire bysynesse þis was on ..Ful preuyly þis lettre for to rede. 1462 Extracts Rec. in W. C hambers Charters Burgh Peebles (1872) 145 A les than he be ..in a neidful erand or besynes. 1534 N. U [ALL Floures for Latine Spekynge gathered oute of Terence f. 28 What busynes hast thou there? or, what makest thou there? a1616 W. S HAK[SP[A‘[ Taming of Shrew

(1623) TTT . iii. 64 If you knew my businesse, You would intreat me rather goe then stay. 1684 J. B U.yA. Pilgrim's Progress 2nd Pt. TT. 72 What is your business here so late to Night? 1720 J. C LA‘K[ Ess. Educ. Youth 18 H is Business will have no Difficulty in it. 1797 M . R ‘BT.S‘. Walsingham III. 260 What business have you in this lady's chamber? 1833 Christian Advocate Jan. 10/1 A s you walk to the house of God, ..ask yourselves what is your business there. 1988 C . L A.[ Scheme of Driftless Shifter 17 What business brings you out on such a night? 2002 V . F Ly..

Separation of Power 125 A woman's voice came over the intercom and asked him his business. Rapp told her he had a flower delivery. c1405 (▸c1387–95) G. C HAUC[‘ Canterbury Tales Prol. (H engwrt) (2003) l. 522 To drawen folk to heuene..this was his bisynesse. c1450 (▸c1390) G. C HAUC[‘ Complaint of Venus (Fairf. 16) (1879) l. 20 M e to serue is al his besynesse. 1483 (▸1413) tr. G. Deguileville Pilgrimage of Soul (C axton) iii. iii. f. lj v A lle youre study & besinesse hath ben to defame tho that were better than ye. ?c1530 in F. J.

Furnivall Polit., Relig., & Love Poems (1903) 57 Peyse wisely the besynes & the purpose of them wich ammynyster thy goodes. 12. 1476 in C . L. Kingsford Stonor Lett. & Papers

(1919) II. 16 C osyn, I longe ..to se you her in London, whanne you have done your besenes. 1553 B P . J. P TLKT.IT‘. in J. Strype Eccl. Memorials

(1721) III. T. xii. 114 Who is meeter for any of these businesses than Sir Iohn Lack-latin? 1557 T. N ‘‘TH tr. A . de Guevara Diall Princes (1582) 424 b The continuall buysines they haue do vex them. 1600 W. S HAK[SP[A‘[ Midsummer Night's Dream TTT . ii. 396 We may effect this businesse, yet ere day. 1611 M . S MTTH in Bible (King James) Transl. Pref. 11 In a businesse of moment a man feareth not the blame of conuenient slacknesse. 1720 A . P ‘P[ tr. H omer Iliad V . XTX. 152 What I act, survey, A nd learn from thence the Business of the Day. 1791 T. J [FF[‘S‘.

Public Papers (1990) x. 420 That [bank] of Philadelphia ..now does this business, by their post-note. 1851 T. C A‘LyL[ Life J. Sterling TT . vi. 207 On these ..businesses ..he was often running up to London. 1881 Daily Tel. 27 Dec. A ttention was paid to the business of the evening. 1921 H . W ALP‘L[ Young Enchanted TTT . iii. 215 I'm off on some business of my own for an hour or two. 1976 Daily Tel. 22 June 1/3 The C onservatives snarled up Government business by ceasing the pairing of M Ps. 2007 Canberra Times (Nexis) 28 A pr. B 5 Official business was conducted in C zech or H ungarian. 1827 A .

W ‘‘[‘‘‘FF[ Michael Married Man 42 Didn't you know that the dress-making was quite a business of itself? 1843 T. C A‘LyL[ Past & Present TT . xii. 140 If he had known what a business it was to govern the A bbey. 1889 Gardening Illustr. 5 Jan. 583/3 If those roots are in a well ..it will be quite a business to attend to them. 1919 E. H ‘L[Sw‘‘TH Taming of Nan 296 What a business it was. 1920 D. H . L Aw‘[.C[ Women in Love xii. 149 She hated the palaver H ermione made ..She wanted anything but this fuss and business. 1995 C .

T ‘y.B[[ Her Work & His 65 M aking beds, dusting and keeping the floors was quite a business. b. A n activity or matter that someone is engaged in, or with which he or she is concerned at a particular time; (often) spec. the errand or matter on which a person comes. v †11. The object of anxiety or serious effort; a serious purpose or aim. Obsolete. a . Work that has to be done; matters demanding attention. Formerly also as a count noun: a particular matter requiring attention; a piece of work, a job (now rare).

C f. a person's business at Phrases 27, to get (also settle) down to business at Phrases 13. admiralty, faculty, parliament business, etc.: see the first element. b. colloquial. A difficult matter, a bother; (as a mass noun) difficulty, bother, fuss. Frequently with indefinite article.

13. 1477 E A‘L R TE[‘S tr. Dictes or Sayengis Philosophhres (C axton) (1877) lf. 53 H e that wele & dyligently vnderstondith to his bysenesse. 1548 H . L ATTM[‘ Notable Serm. sig. C .ii Lette euery man do his owne busynes, and folow his callyng. 1694 R. L'E ST‘A.I[ Fables (ed. 6) ccclxv. 385 They make Fooling their Business and their Livelihood. 1729 W. L Aw Serious Call ii. 19 H is every-day business will be a course of wise and reasonable actions. 1746 L [ . C H[ST[‘FT[L[ Let. 25 Jan. (1932) (modernized text) III. 724 To apply yourself seriously to your business. 1747 Gen. Descr.

All Trades 181 Their Business is not only Saddle-making, .. but to .. sell all other Necessaries for the..H orseman. 1840 Evid. Hull Docks Comm. 69 What is the nature of your business as a sloop-broker? 1882 B [[CH[‘ in Homiletic Monthly (N.Y.) A pr. 381 One whose business it is to preach. 1949 Pop. Mech. A ug. 125 M y business is lecturing on wildlife. 1977 W. M C I LEA..[y Laidlaw xl. 186 ‘What's his business?’ ‘Same as any tout's. Other people's.’ 2001 Kindred Spirit Summer 27/1 I have listened to many top-quality bullshitters in my business. 1724 J. C .

F. [[ H ATVF[L[ Case of Learned XXT . 163 Their Parents are obliged to put them to inferior Trades or Businesses, instead of giving them an Education. 1827 T. C A‘LyL[ tr. J. L. Tieck in German Romance II. 89 I wished to be a fisherman, and tried that business for a time. 1845 J. R. M C C ULL‘CH Treat. Taxation T . ii. 74 Taxes on the profits of particular businesses. 1856 J. A . F ‘‘U[[ Hist. Eng.

(1858) I. i. 51 Not allowing any man to work at a business for which he was unfit. 1878 W. S. J [E‘.S Polit. Econ. 58 A good butcher makes high wages, because his business is a greasy one, besides being thought to be cruel. 1906 Yale Courant 43 808 There is an old saying among railroad men ..that ‘accidents are part of the business’. 2007 P. G ‘[[. Pete Duel xiii. 267 A cting is a business that attracts neurotics and feeds their neuroses. 14. 1478 R. C [Ly Let. 28 Oct. in Cely Lett. (1975) 33 I wyll ye com home, ..for there schall be no besynese at C aleys thys marte tyme. 1599 J. M T.SH[U Percyvall's Dict.

Spanish & Eng. at Negociar To deale in businesse, to follow a trade. 1637 News-lett. C. Rossingham in S. Gardiner Documents Proc. against W. Prynne (1877) 84 The maulting business goes on, but with some restrictions. 1698 C . D AE[.A.T Disc. Public Revenues I. 12 The years 1686, 1687, and 1688, when our foreign business was at its height. 1725 D. D [F‘[ Compl. Eng. Tradesman I. iv. 56 If they do not get money, they gain knowledge in business. 1779 H . A ‘.‘T Hist. Edinb. TE. iv. 532 Those abuses which had crept into the banking business. 1823 C .

L AMB South-sea House in Elia 4 To open a book of business, or bill of lading. 1878 Scribner's Monthly Dec. 309/1 The rapid increase of the laundry business has led to the invention of a number of appliances for ironing. 1884 Times (Weekly ed.) 12 Sept. 7/3 They are evidently doing a very brisk business. 1897 ‘M . T wAT. ’ Following Equator iii. 53 When he destroyed the C hurch and burned the idols he did a mighty thing for civilization ..but it was not ‘business.’ 1935 Law & Contemp. Probl. 2 1 A great expansion of the life insurance business. 1948 ‘N.

S HUT[ ’ No Highway iv. 92 The synthetic, phoney film business. 1952 S. M [A[ (title) H ow to succeed in business without really trying. 1966 Economist 12 Nov. 682/3 A growing use of economists in business and government. 2008 Vanity Fair (N.Y.) July 114/2 With more and more business coming online, the Internet underwent an enormous build-out. 1728 Stamford Mercury 4 Jan. 8/2 A Book of A ccounts relating to the Business of ..A nthony Nicholes, C heese-Factor. a .

With possessive adjective or genitive: a person's official or professional duties as a whole; one's regular, habitual, or stated profession, trade, or occupation. Now frequently colloquial: ‘line of work’. v v b. A n instance of this; a particular occupation or means of earning a living; a trade, profession, or pursuit. a . Trade and all activity relating to it, esp. considered in terms of volume or profitability; commercial transactions, engagements, and undertakings regarded collectively; an instance of this. H ence more generally: the world of trade and commerce. A lso figurative. C f. C‘MM[‘C[ n. 1.

Now the most common sense. Frequently with modifying word denoting a particular area of commercial activity, or the product it relates to. big, music, newspaper, show business, etc.: see the first element. C f. in business at Phrases 2, on business at Phrases 1, to do business at Phrases 11a. b. A commercial company, firm, or enterprise conducting such activity. U sually taken to include its premises, staff, trade, profit, liabilities, etc. dry-goods, lumber, malting business, etc.: see the first element.

1787 Times 8 Jan. 4/4 (advt.) Shop and business to dispose of ..together with a small low-rented house. 1788 Eng. Described 223 The brazery, pewtery, brass-foundry, iron-foundry and iron-forgery businesses [of Wigan], find employment for a great number of hands. 1800 P. H ‘A‘[ Indiscretion E . iii. 71 A newspaper business, eh? 1819 Times 8 M ar. 1/1 A M edical Practitioner wishes to purchase a small business. 1856 J.

K AEA.AIH Rachel Gray viii. 142 I've got capital now, you see, and so I am going to set up a grocery business. 1878 Spirit of Times 19 Jan. 659/2 It takes five or six years to establish any good business on a firm basis. 1937 Ann. Reg. 1936 TT . 63 Owners of one-man businesses. 1988 Oxf. Today 1 37/1 Getting a small business started wasn't easy. 2002 New Yorker 22 A pr. 194/3 I try to imagine myself as ..a savvy entrepreneur with her own catering business. 1755 C . C HA‘K[ Narr. Life 130 Business continuing very shocking. 1811 C . M ATH[wS Let. 5 Dec. in A . M athews Mem. C. Mathews

(1838) II. viii. 173 They may promise a salary, and I am sure they would pay it; but can they promise business? 1837 in W. R. A lger Life E. Forrest

(1877) I. 324 Will conclude with her benefit on Friday evening when she will probably have between $900 and $1,000 ... This is considered a very handsome business. 1895 N.Y. Dramatic News 12 Oct. 5/2 H anlon brothers' Superba has played to ‘banner’ business. 1995 P. H ‘A‘[ Noël Coward 158 The Vortex tour finished in C leveland ..to good business. 1859 Tyrone (Pa.) Daily Herald 8 M ar. 4 Three hundred and fifty-seven students are in attendance at this time, making it the largest and most popular business School ever organized in the U nited States. 1868 J. H T.T‘. Let. Sept. in E. H opkins Life & Lett. J.

Hinton (1878) xi. 247 I saw, with the greatest interest, a little of the higher schools at Dresden and Breslau ...

It is very striking to see how the Swiss and German boys are taught business as well as other things. 1889 Publishers' Weekly 26 Jan. 66/1 The author has for years been advocating the teaching of ‘business’ at school to English youths. 1922 System A pr. 467/2 If you studied business in school or college, you probably studied rules and principles. 1975 Accounting Rev. 50 234/2 Background on both management accounting and decision models for students who do not have the undergraduate degree in business. 2000 R. L [wTS & R. T ‘[ETTT Business for Adv.

GNVQ (ed. 3) Introd. p. ix Welcome to your new course, the V ocational A level in Business. 1913 E. V . S H[PA‘[ Sci. Auction Bridge 119 Bids of 1-H eart cannot be purely informatory, and it is unsafe to reckon them as meaning less than business. 1929 E. V . S H[PA‘[ Correct Contract Bridge (1930) 67 A ll other doubles mean ‘business’, and are intended to collect a penalty. 1959 Listener 23 July 154/3 It is standard practice to regard a double as primarily for business. 2005 M . H ‘‘T‘.

Hands of Time 108 When East redoubled for business, North-South's system dictated that a pass would convey the message that South had no long suit to run to. 15. 1524 tr. J. de Bourbon Begynnynge & Foundacyon Holy Hospytall sig. E.ii [It would have] ben ouer longe besynesse & in the meane tyme the turke myght haue chaunged his mynde. 1615 State Papers Earl of Melrose

(1837) I. 201 Our greatest..impedimentis..[in the] fashious besines of Eglintoun. a1616 W. S HAK[SP[A‘[ Macbeth

(1623) TT . i. 22 We would spend it [sc. an houre] in some words vpon that Businesse . a1674 T. T ‘AH[‘.[ Christian Ethicks (1675) 433 It is a poor business for a man to be secure, that has nothing to lose. 1706 London Gaz. No. 4012/1 A Business has lately happened which may..engage us in new Disputes. 1774 Trinket 172 Une affaire de cœur, is at best a silly business, yet mighty necessary to trifle off that trifle, life. 1805 Med. & Physical Jrnl. 14 354 The vaccinator should..see his patient at least four times during the progress of the business. 1813 R.

S ‘UTH[y Life Nelson II. 177 This boat business..might be part of a great plan of invasion. 1867 M . A . M ACKA‘.[SS Example Better than Precept 51 This is a bad business, Bob: if that 'ere doctor ain't here pretty quick-sticks,..it's all over with this chap. c. Theatre. The audience or attendance at a theatre; a ‘house’; (also) the takings from this, the total of box-office receipts. d. Trade and all related activity as a subject of academic study or examination. Recorded earliest in business school (see C ompounds 3b). e. Bridge.

The transaction of points; the exaction of penalties. for business: to gain a penalty. C f. C ompounds 4. a . A situation or series of events; an affair, concern, matter, now often one regarded as curious or discreditable. Sometimes with modifying word, as bad, odd, strange, etc.

1915 A . H UXL[y Let. Nov. (1969) 85 What an odd business it was about the suppression of Lawrence's book, The Rainbow. 1939 ‘G. O ‘w[LL ’ Coming up for Air TE . vii. 283 Listen, H ilda. You've got hold of the wrong end of the stick about this business. 2003 S. B ‘[TT Murder in Museum xi. 87 ‘The police haven't made an announcement to the press yet?’ ‘No ... The whole business is still under wraps.’ 1612 B. J ‘.S‘. Alchemist TTT . iv. sig. G4 Kas. Where is this Doctor? .. H as he any skill? Fac. Wherein, Sir? Kas. To cary a busines, manage a Quarrell, fayrely, V pon fit termes. 1616 B. J ‘.S‘.

Mercurie Vindicated 154 in Wks. I For that's the word of tincture, the businesse. Let me alone with the businesse, I will carrie the businesse. I doe vnderstand the businesse. I doe finde an affront i' the businesse. 1640 tr. G. S. du V erdier Love & Armes Greeke Princes T . xv. 62 Don Florisel .. knowing full well how to carry a businesse ..avoided half of his blows. a1684 J. E E[Ly. Diary anno 1654

(1955) III. 96 Sir T. Fowlers A viarie ..is a poore buisinesse. 1697 tr. Countess D'Aunoy's Trav. (1706) 231 Some Pastry business, which burns the M outh, it is so excessively peppered. 1825 Examiner 3 Jan. 3/2 A business of screws and iron wheels. 1884 S. B [CK[TT His Wedded Wife xiv. 79 A French coffeepot, ..[with] some complicated business of a sieve-like nature at the top. 1954 M . M . K [[H. Let. 13 June in India Ink (2000) 41 Rehka showed me how to fix my hair Indian style, in a bun business at the back. 1989 P.

A CK‘‘y[ First Light 144 ‘What's that business over there?’ H e pointed towards the tumulus. 16. 1525 L [ . B [‘.[‘S tr. J. Froissart Cronycles II. xxi. 43 It is longe now sith I made any mencion of the busynesses of farre countreis. 1526 Bible (Tyndale) Phil. 12 That my busynes [τὰ κατ' ἐμὲ] is happened unto the gretter furtherynge off the gospell. 1682 T. D'U ‘F[y Royalist T . i. 1 Stealing, why that's the business of the nation. 1714 D. M A.L[y Adventures of Rivella 117 She now agrees with me, that Politicks is not the Business of a Woman. 1809 D UK[ ‘F W [LLT.IT‘. Dispatches

(1838) V . 198 The care of the C amp Kettles is .. the business ..of all the Bâtmen of the regiment. 1871 B. J ‘w[TT in tr. Plato Dialogues IV . 24 V irtue is the business of the legislator. 1991 Past & Present A ug. 48 It is too easy to assume that, such is the fallen nature of mankind, reformation is the business of the next world. 1692 R. L'E ST‘A.I[ Fables ccxx. 193 What business has a tortoise among the clouds? 1727 tr. Amusing Instructer 17 We have no business to intermeddle in other people's affairs. 1761 F. S H[‘T[A. Mem. Miss Sidney Bidulph II. 308 She has no business to go into her own lonely house again; it would be enough to kill her. a1859 C . K T.ISL[y Misc.

(1863) II. 311 That is no business of ours. 1878 H . S MA‘T Play or Pay (ed. 3) ix. 177 A C aptain of Dragoons has no business with a wife; but then we're always doing what we've no business to do. 1937 A . C H‘TSTT[ Dumb Witness viii. 88 Neither A nnie nor I could see that it was any business of M iss Lawson's. 1982 R. H ALL Just Relations TT . i. 116 That's what travel does for you, ..gadding about where civilized people have no business poking their noses. 2001 A . M A‘SHALL Court of Common Pleas (2003) 171 ‘It's none of your business.’ .. ‘Since it's about me ..I'd say it is my business.’ 1759 S. J ‘H.S‘.

Prince of Abissinia II. xxix. 33 M y business is with man. 1837 T. C A‘LyL[ French Revol. II. T. i. 8 M adame, your business is with the children. 1872 Harper's Mag. Oct. 673/2 Our business is with those smaller, but terribly annoying vermin, the ‘dock rats’. 1921 Bull. John Rylands Libr. 6 237 Our business is with opinion rather than with events, with generalities rather than with details. 1998 A . W ATS‘. Anc. Law & Mod. Understanding vi. 72 Our business is with acorns that fall from trees. 17. †b. A n ‘affair of honour’; a duel. C hiefly in to carry a business. Obsolete. c. colloquial.

A material object or contrivance, esp. one of indeterminate character, or one regarded as complex or cumbersome. C f. AFFAT‘ n. 7b, C‘.C[‘. n. 10a. a . A matter, activity, etc., that concerns or relates to a particular person or thing. U sually with of or genitive. b. colloquial. C hiefly in negative constructions: a matter or thing which one has the right to meddle with, involve oneself in, express an opinion on, etc. See also to be none of a person's business at .‘.[ pron. 4b; to mind one's own business at Phrases 5a. c. C oncern, the fact of being concerned with. Now somewhat archaic.

1611 Bible (King James) Judges xviii. 7 They ..had no businesse with any man. 1731 Gentleman's Mag. Feb. 53 A n island has no business with the affairs of the continent, only as a friendly neighbour. 1843 T. C A‘LyL[ Past & Present TE . vi. 382 What a shallow delusion is this.. That any man ..can keep himself apart from men, have ‘no business’ with them, except a cash-account ‘business’! 1903 Bankers' Mag. Jan. 75 It seems hardly necessary to say anything about honesty; few will have any business with other than honest men. 2000 S. N [wMA. To wear White Cloak 325 Do you know him?

I understood that he had no business with your people. a1612 J. H A‘T.IT‘. Epigrams (1618) 280 [The proctor] doth her [sc. his wife's] busines with great satisfaction. 1641 Wits Recreations (new ed.) sig. N8 H e does no businesse of thy wives, not hee: H e does thy businesse (C oracine) for thee. a1687 P. H UIH[S in T. Brown et al. Lett. from Dead to Living

(1707) II. 98 U s Ladies, who like the Industrious Beaver, do our business with our tails. 1724 Laugh & be Fat (ed. 9) 79 The Wife consented, and the Business being done with a Jirk, he gave her Directions how she should manage the M atter. 1762 T. B ‘T[I[S Homer Travestie I. T. 123 Shall whoring, lying Paris do Nell's business, and her husband go? 1884 J. S MTTHS‘. tr. F. C . Forberg Man. Classical Erotol. I. 21 Face downwards to her the man may do the woman's business, while she is half reclining. 1922 J.

J ‘yC[ Ulysses 508 There was a priest down here two nights ago to do his bit of business with his coat buttoned up. You needn't try to hide, I says to him. I know you've a Roman collar. 1955 W. G A[[TS Recognitions vii. 633 I gave her a three-and-a-half grain shot of sodium amytal and then I climbed on and gave her the business. 2006 J. B UCKL[y Celebrate Myself 39 Smart move not even bothering to undress before doing the business. 1637 J. R UTT[‘ tr. P. C orneille Cid To Rdr. sig.

A 4 Two Scenes I have left out, as being soliloquies and little pertinent to the business. 1672 D UK[ ‘F B UCKT.IHAM Rehearsal TTT . 28 I see here is a great deal of Plot, M r. Bayes. Bayes. Yes, ..but we shall have a world of more business anon. 1781 R. B. S H[‘T[A. Critic TT . ii The carpenters say, that unless there is some business put in here ..they shan't have time to clear away the fort. 1860 Cornhill Mag. Dec. 749 They give the literary composition the almost contemptuous title of ‘words’, while they dignify the movements of the characters with the name of ‘business’. 1893 I.

Z A.IwTLL Children of Ghetto (ed. 3) xiii. 123 A n actor who knows all the ‘business’ elaborated by his predecessors. 1923 P. G. W ‘[[H‘US[ Adventures of Sally vi. 78 ‘Bit o' business,’ she announced, at length ... ‘C haracter stuff ... M aids chew gum, you know.’ 2009 Washington Post (Nexis) 11 Jan. m1 Bits of what actors call ‘business’—lighting a cigarette, picking up a drink. 1655 A . S PA‘‘‘w Rationale Bk. Common Prayer 44 This Sunday ..the Epistle and Gospel treat about the same businesse, the birth of C hrist. 1660 T. S TA.L[y Hist. Philos. III.

T. 56 The Pythagoreans .., were studiously addicted to the businesse of Numbers. a1690 J. R USHw‘‘TH Hist. Coll.: Third Pt.

(1692) I. 42 When a Business was begun and in debate. 1756 J. T ‘w.[ Free & Candid Exam. Princ. Bishop of London’s Serm. iii. 162 Now, the theme and business of the book must have been poorly executed indeed, if M oses, [etc.]. 1844 W. R AMSAy in W. Smith Dict. Greek & Rom. Biogr. & Mythol. I. 729/1 A fter a digression on the..worthlessness of physical pursuits, the real business of the piece is opened. 1912 A . R A.S‘M[ Oscar Wilde 25 Before proceeding to the main business of the book, ..I wish to set before myself and my readers a

summary biography. 1997 Muqarnas 14 101/1 The commencement of the stated business of the letter. 1715 A . P ‘P[ tr. H omer Iliad I. Pref. M y Lord Bolingbroke, not more distinguish'd in the great scenes of business, than in all the useful and entertaining parts of learning. a . C hiefly in negative constructions: dealings, intercourse, communication with. Now rare (in later use merging with sense 14a). Sometimes with reference to Biblical usage (quot. 1611). b. euphemistic. Sexual intercourse, sex. Now usually with the. v 18. Theatre.

A ction on stage (as distinguished from dialogue), esp. that intended to forward the progress of the plot, pass time, or aid characterization. funny, leading-, leg-business, etc.: see the first element. C f. stage business n. at STAI[ n. C ompounds 1a(a), business of the stage n. at Phrases 29. 19. A subject or topic of consideration or discussion; the subject of a book, communication, etc. Now archaic. C ommon esp. in the 17th cent. †20. Official or public engagements collectively; active or public life. Frequently in man of business n. (

b) at Phrases 28b. Obsolete.

1781 S. J ‘H.S‘. Pope in Pref. Wks. Eng. Poets V II. 14 Sir William Trumbal, who had been ..secretary of state, when he retired from business, fixed his residence in the neighbourhood of Binfield. 1868 Fortn. Rev. Jan. 54 ‘Speak, M adame, I am all attention.’ ‘Now that's business,’ said the lady approvingly. 1904 Motor Age 27 Oct. 23/3 They know how to make a car look the business. See that hood. No one ever saw a hood like that on anything but a foreign car. 1908 Amer. Aeronaut. Jan. 19/1 It looks like business,—that rakish, elongated hull, so pretty in its symmetrical simplicity. 1946 Pop. Mech.

Nov. 177 Not much to look at, maybe, but for making blocks it's the business. 1984 Guardian 19 July 21/7 Dressed in their swanky black kits, Fulham looked the business when they walloped Wigan in their inaugural game. 1998 Melody Maker 14 M ar. 47/6 [The guitars] doubtless sound the business too. 2007 C . H U.T[‘ Eight Lives Down (2009) vii. 66 I'm really proud of these guys. I've only known them for a few days, but they really are the business. III.

As a collective noun. a1450 Terms Assoc. in PMLA (1936) 51 603 (MED) A besynes of feryttes. ?1478 Lydgate's Horse, Goose & Sheep (C axton) (1822) 31 A besynes of flyes. 1486 Bk. St. Albans sig. fvi A Besynes of ferettis. 1950 F. D. S MTTH & B. W TLC‘X Country Compan. 161 A drove of asses; cete of badgers;..kennel of dogs; business of ferrets. 2004 D. D U.CA. Jaguar Knights vi. 252 I'm sure his goons will go through the ship like a business of ferrets, and they'll want to look in our baggage. P H‘TiEi 1670 tr.

A . de Brunel Journey into Spain 150 Don Lewis was no sooner infavour, and entred on business. 1770 Trial W. Wemms 100 I saw several men pass ... They walked faster than people generally do on business. 1800 in Spirit of Public Jrnls. (1801) 4 160 You step to a friend's house on business, near his dinner-hour. 1934 ‘L. G. G TBB‘. ’ Grey Granite i. 23 Sergeant Sim Leslie had been in Duncairn, on business, like, that very forenoon. 2008 D.

L ‘[I[ Deaf Sentence (2009) xi. 140 Gone are the days when I would travel down on business..to meet a publisher, paying my own fare but getting a bibulous free lunch. 1756 London Mag. M ay 226/1 While they [sc. tradesmen] remain in business, they ought not to assume that exterior pomp and shew which is only becoming in men of fashion. 1842 F.

M A‘‘yAT Percival Keene I. ii. 22 M y mother..before she had been a year in business, found that she was making money very fast. 1891 Arthur's Home Mag. 61 875/1 I will recommend you to my scholars, and all you will have to do is..arrange your hours, and you are in business. 1933 S. W ALK[‘ Night Club Era 81 M ost of them were staid men, had been in business for years. 2008 Independent 12 M ar. (Property section) 7/3 ‘We're in business!’ he trumpeted, striding into the office and waking up the rest of us. 1340To do business [see sense 2]. ▸ a1393 J.

G ‘w[‘ Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) Prol. l. 63 Yit woll I fonde To wryte and do my bisinesse. 1422 in F. J. Furnivall Fifty Earliest Eng. Wills (1882) 51 They will do her besynesse to fulfyll goddes will. ?a1425 (▸c1400) Mandeville's Trav. (Titus C .xvi) (1919) 166 Þei werren full wisely & allweys don here besynes to destroyen hire enemyes. ?c1450 (▸?a1400) J. W yCLTF Eng. Wks. (1880) 373 H e wol þat þai ȝeue bissynes to þe londe & not to þe lawe. 1582 S. B ATMA. Vppon Bartholome, De Proprietatibus Rerum XE . ix. 214 In Greece was nothing more noble ..then that C itye [sc.

A thens], while it gaue businesse to study of ..wisdome. 21. colloquial. Something very good or impressive; the best. Now usually with the, esp. in to be the business, to look the business. 22. A swarm of flies, a group of ferrets. A pparently reintroduced in the 20th cent. by dictionaries, and popularized as a literary device. P1. on business: with an errand or purpose relating to business, now esp. to commercial business or one's trade or profession. P2. in business: operating or habitually occupied in trade or commerce; running or managing a business; (in extended use) able to begin operations, operational.

C f. to start in business at STA‘T v. 21b. †P3. to do (one'

s) business: to take pains, try one's hardest, do one's best. to give business to: to pay attention to, attend to diligently. Obsolete.

P4. ?1483 W. C AXT‘. tr. Caton iv. sig. i.vii I shal retorne to my hows for to doo and go aboute my besynesse. 1577 B. G ‘‘I[ tr. C . H eresbach Foure Bks. Husbandry TE . f. 187 Yf they [sc. bees] goe about their businesse cheerefully. 1687 in J. R. Bloxham Magdalen Coll. & James II (1886) (modernized text) 210 H e was a pert ..man ..and ..might go about his business. 1749 H . F T[L[T.I Tom Jones V I. XET. v. 47 Go about your Business; I hate the Sight of you. 1878 W. S. J [E‘.S Polit.

Econ. 62 H e would..be told to go about his business. 1930 Times 17 A pr. 10/5 Good Friday .. ought never to have been made a mere public holiday. A t such a time far better go about our business ..and attend an evening sermon in our place of worship. 2003 G. B U‘. North of Eng. Home Service (2004) v. 170 People..went about their business every day trying not to breathe in the foul stench from the unburied ..carcasses. 1728 C . C TBB[‘ Vanbrugh's Provok'd Husband T . i. 13 Sir John will certainly have it heard at the Bar of the H ouse, and send him about his Business again. 1822 T. L.

P [AC‘CK Maid Marian ix. 125 H e had ..sent all King H enry's saints about their business, or rather about their no-business. 1918 W. L [wTS Tarr TE . vii. 179 H e had the incredible impudence to wish to make up to me. I sent him about his business. 1999 E. P [T[‘S Falcon at Portal (2000) x. 10 I'd have sent him about his business, sir, only ..he said you'd be sorry if you didn't see him. P5. 1610 J. H [AL[y tr. St. A ugustine Citie of God TE . xiv. 174 If V ictory ..be but propitious, let Ioue mind his own businesse, the nations shall come vnder. 1749 H . F T[L[T.I Tom Jones I.

T. ii. 9 I must desire all those C ritics to mind their own Business . 1814 M . L [A[B[AT[‘ & E. S HACKL[T‘. Tales for Cottagers 199 Let every one mind their own business. 1882 W. B [SA.T All Sorts of Men I. iv. 109 ‘M ind your own business,’ growled his uncle. 1994 Denver Post 6 Feb. B 1/1 When his mother got in his face about it, the boy told her to mind her own business. 1882 H . B. H ASTT.IS Pebbles from Path of Pilgrim 16 I walked along, minding my own business, when, to my astonishment, M r. C . drove past me, on his way to the next village. 1917 B. H [CHT in P.

Glassgold Anarchy! (2001) 222 I was walking along peaceably minding my own business, and he came up and soaked me. 1975 M . H . W ‘LF I'll take Back Road TTT . 72 I was minding my own business .. when this chicken-sized ..bird ran right up to me and slammed into my head. 2007 A . E .‘TIHT Gathering (2008) xxv. 162 H e was sitting in the seat in front of us, minding his own business until M ossie pointed him out. 1611 T. M T[[L[T‘. & T. D [KK[‘ Roaring Girle sig. E3 Nay then they know their businesse, they neede no more instructions. 1693 H . H TI[[.

Wary Widdow TE . 37 But Drunk or sober M ate, I know my business. 1779 Mirror No. 2. ⁋6 M r. C reech ..knew his business better than to satisfy their curiosity. 1841 Punch 6 Nov. 203/1 Let every amateur, professor, and enthusiastic raver concerning ‘native talent’ go down on his knees ..for ..a singer who knows her business. 1907 J. C ‘.‘A[ Secret Agent i. 3 But M r. V erloc knew his business, and remained undisturbed. 1995 A . H A‘[y Where to eat in Canada 410 The sausages come from a butcher who knows his business. 1596 J. H A‘T.IT‘. Apol. sig.

P ij H e loues an easie cleanly Iaxe maruellous wel,..[and] if one be his deare friend, he will let him tarrie with him, while he is at his businesse. 1630 in Minutes Norwich Court of Mayoralty 1630–1 (1942) 86 H e..turned downe his hose & did his busyness. a . to go about one's business and variants: to occupy oneself with one's normal activities or routine; (also) to go off and attend to one's own affairs, to go away; hence in imperative use, as a formula of impatient dismissal (now rare). b. to send about one's business: to dismiss unceremoniously, to send packing (now somewhat archaic). a . to mind one's own business: to refrain from interfering in another's affairs; also as imperative (cf. to mind one's business at MT.[ v. 4a).

Now colloquial. b. colloquial. to be minding one's own business: to be doing something that is not disturbing anyone (usually before some subsequent interference, event, etc.). P6. to know one's business: to be experienced or knowledgeable in one's subject, profession, etc. C f. to know one's stuff at STUFF n. 7g. 1 v P7. colloquial. to do (a lso †be at) one's business: to defecate or (occasionally) to urinate .

?1704 M ‘S . W ‘‘THT.IT‘. Let. in E. H amilton Mordaunts (1965) vi. 123 C ate hath bene verey ill she cept up a day or 2 she canot due har bisnes. 1866 Secret Hist. Votary of Pleasure 18 One day, when I was ‘doing my business’, behind the barn, I heard the footsteps of a horse. 1993 Garden Answers M ay 56/2 C ats rarely do their business in their owners' gardens. 1603 P. H ‘LLA.[ tr. Plutarch Morals 299 She bringeth sharpe edged swords to do the businesse. 1751 L [ . C H[ST[‘FT[L[ Let. 6 M ay in Lett. to Son

(1774) II. 143 A n air, a tone of voice, a composure of countenance to mildness and softness, which are all easily acquired, do the business. 1864 ‘M . T wAT. ’ Early Tales & Sketches

(1981) II. 29 That coffee did the business for us. 1904 St. Nicholas M ay 588/1 We will now describe the ‘sure enough’ engine—the part that Tom said really ‘did the business’. 1954 Pop. Mech. A ug. 6/2 With the motor turning at 1725 r.p.m., the jug flew to pieces ... The third did the business. It was wrapped from top to bottom with the wire and, being perfectly balanced, lasted throughout my tests. 2005 C . N [wB‘‘‘K Ducks in Row 15 H e did the business, all right. H e came of age with that project, he did. a1628 J. P ‘[ST‘. Foure Serm. iii. 78 in New Covenant

(1629) Let vs labour ..to make it our whole busines to feare God and keepe his C ommandements. 1642 T. F ULL[‘ Holy State T . x. 25 Though going abroad sometimes about her businesse, she never makes it her businesse to go abroad. 1735 G. B [‘K[L[y Def. Free-thinking in Math. 54 I have myself freely conversed with M athematicians of all ranks, ..as well as made it my business to be informed of the Opinions of others. 1888 J. B ‘yC[ Amer. Commonw. I. xiv. 213 The class of professional ‘lobbyists’,..who make it their business to ‘see’ members. 1946 ‘P.

W [.Tw‘‘TH ’ Clock strikes Twelve ix. 43 ‘I don't know how she knew.’ ‘She's the sort of woman who makes it her business to know.’ 2006 New Yorker 29 M ay 28/2 Katz ..has made it her business to upset that monopoly. 1667 S. P [PyS Diary 16 Nov.

(1974) V III. 533 Lord V aughan, that is so great against the C hancellor .. was heard to swear ..he would do my Lord C larendon's business. 1759 S. G A‘[.[‘ Jrnl. 10 Dec. in Essex Inst. Hist. Coll.

(1860) II. 287/1 They did the business for him with an Iron C row. 1773 O. G ‘L[SMTTH She stoops to Conquer E . 94 Oh, Tony, I'm killed ... That last jolt that laid us against the quickset hedge has done my business. 1816 J. A UST[. Emma I. viii. 122 H er visit to A bbey-M ill ..seems to have done his business. H e is desperately in love. 1891 J. M . D TX‘. Dict. Idiomatic Eng. Phrases 47 H is last imprudent exposure of himself to the night air did the business for him. 1995 A . N ‘‘T‘. Mirror of Destiny (2001) 348 Flyin' things ..did the business for the C aptain's squad. P11. 1674 N. F AT‘FAX Treat.

Bulk & Selvedge i. 5 A Jews naked not doing business on his Rest-day. 1764 T. L [II Low-life (ed. 3) 70 Tallow-C handlers who do Business privately in Back C ellars ..to evade the King's Duty. 1858 T. D [ Q UT.C[y Secret Societies (rev. ed.) in Select. Grave & Gay V II. 256 It has done business as a swindle through thirty generations. 1890 G. N.

M C L [A. (title) H ow to do business. 1980 Business Week (Industr. ed.) 11 A ug. 44/2 It will be at least two years before the new holding company ..is ready to do business. 2005 Computer Weekly 19 A pr. 43/3 C ybercrime threatens to undermine the confidence of consumers doing business online. 1749 W. H ALFP[..y New Syst. Archit. Delineated 24 M aster's closet or counting house to do business with workmen. 1869 Ann. Rep. Commissioner Agric. 1868 340 in U.S. Congress.

Serial Set (40th C ongr., 3rd Sess.: H ouse of Representatives Executive Doc.) X V A n oyster merchant of Rochelle, doing business with the growers of the adjacent islands. 1986 New Yorker 10 Feb. 89/2 M rs. Thatcher had described Gorbachev ..as someone she could do business with. 2008 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 4 M ay (Business section) 9/6 Others who do business with him say .. he is ..a superb ‘relationship manager’. P8. to do the business: to accomplish a task; (in later use) to be successful or effective, to do well. C f. to do the trick at T‘TCK n. Phrases 2.

P9. to make it one's business: to undertake as a self-appointed task (to do something). P10. colloquial. to do a person's business (also to do the business for a person): to ‘do for’, ruin, or kill a person. A lso figurative. a . to do business: to engage in commercial transactions; also figurative. b. to do business with (a person): to engage in commercial transactions with (someone); (in extended use) to have successful dealings or negotiations with (someone). P12. colloquial. to mean business: to be serious about something.

1841 C . H . K .‘X Hardness I. xi. 186 H arry struck up a great friendship with her for a time, and I think meant business. 1897 Daily News 26 Oct. 5/2 ‘We mean business’, said one of her M ajesty's ministers. 1988 D. C A‘P[.T[‘ God's Bedfellows iv. 80 Sometimes you gotta let them know you mean business, otherwise they'll treat you like dirt. 2004 H . S T‘ACHA. Make a Skyf, Man! v. 48 Industrial sabotage to show the big industrialists of the régime that we mean business. 1868 Minutes Gen. Council First Internat. (Internat. Workingmen's A ssoc.) 394 To get down to business!

It is high time that the workmen of all lands should unite. 1916 Indianapolis Sunday Star 19 Nov. 45/5 With the ..‘I told-you-so-ing’ out of our systems we can settle down to business. 1933 S. W ALK[‘ Night Club Era 36 Jim met them, treated them courteously, gave them each a drink, and got down to business. 2005 A . O HLT.

Missing Person (2006) xii. 159 I suggested, politely, that we just get down to business. 1873 Chicago Tribune 3 Sept. 4/4 The National A dministration is not in the business of either making or unmaking the Governors of M assachusetts or of any other State. 1882 Puck (N.Y.) 10 M ay 153/3 We are not in the business of insulting good and true women such as the Sisters of C harity. 1909 W. C . S H[PPA‘[ Rambler Club Afloat 356 Do you think I'm in the business of blowing up boats? .. Of course not!

I had nothing to do with it. 1981 Observer 1 M ar. 13/6 Journalists ..are in the business, after all, of making a fuss. 2000 R. W. H ‘L[[‘ Taunton Cider & Langdons iv. 20 The Great Western Railway was not in the business of eating humble pie. P17. slang (chiefly U.S.). to give (a person) the business. 1919 Recruiters' Bull. (U .S.

M arine C orps) July 16/1 Now that we have just got all through moppin' up Germany, along comes M exico tryin' to give us the business. 1931 Chicago Tribune 8 M ay 15/3 Three men trained their weapons on him. ‘Keep your trap shut or we'll give you the business,’ said one of them. c1950 R. M C L [TSH Gorbals Story TTT , in Sc. People's Theatre (A ssoc. Sc. Lit. Stud.) (2008) 41 I'm goin to do him—I'm gonny give him the business. 1981 J. H TIIT.S Luciano's Luck xii. 154 When they heard Luciano was coming, they didn't like it. They tried to give him the business. 2007 T. N.

B AK[‘ Dice 208 I seen that somebody must've given him the business, with that nice-size, buck-fifty slash running from his temple to his jawbone. 1936 Spectator (C hilton Publishing C o.) 8 Oct. 16/2 When I put the proposition to him he cut me off with a curt, ‘C an it.’ M r. Traynor explained to me later that Willie wasn't giving me the business after all. 1940 Los Angeles Times 5 Feb. TT. 9/1 Then M iss M ead, apparently informed of my woeful inability on the tennis courts, really gave me the business. 1957 J. L AK[ & H . G TBL‘ Footlights, Fistfights & Femmes 108 M y troupe was anything but elderly.

They were all young and snippy, so I gave them the business. ‘Button your lips when you get there.’ 1968 Ebony Jan. 49/1 Inmates gave him the business about having picked up a little weight, and the graying hair. 2005 N.Y.

Times 17 July TE . 14/2 In Boston, politicians are more likely to ‘give you the business’, needling you in some personal way. 1936 Boston Sunday Globe 11 Oct. (Editorial & News Feature section) 2/6 By the way, Inspector, about what time do you think Singer got the business, to be colloquial? 1952 Hartford (C onnecticut) Courant 24 Oct. 18/1 A distinguished Senator who had good reason to think he might be the Democratic presidential nominee until he got the business from M r. Truman and his friends at the Democratic convention. 1952 ‘H .

G ‘[y ’ Hoods xix. 153 A ccording to all the ..stories of hoodlums breaking away from the mob, he invariably gets the ‘business’ if he quits. 2009 V . M AVVA‘[LLA Atsa Mi Paese xviii. 337 I'm sorry that the smell bothers you ... I've already got the business from Geri, so you're not alone with your beef. P13. to get (a lso settle) down to business: to begin serious work, to begin matters in earnest. P14. colloquial. to be in the business of: to be engaged or involved in, to be concerned with. Frequently in negative contexts. P15. to be none of a person's business: see .‘.[ pron. 4b.

P16. to do a rushing business: see ‘USHT.I adj. 2. a . Originally Criminals' slang. To kill; (also) to beat up, assault. C f. to give (a person) the works at w‘‘K n. Phrases 2c. b. To abuse verbally, harangue; (in weakened sense) to tease, mock. P18. slang (chiefly U.S.). to get the business: to be killed or beaten up; (also) to abused or teased. C f. to give (a person) the business at Phrases 17.

1952 ‘H . G ‘[y ’ Hoods xxi. 162 The Boss is up early in the morning taking care of business. 1967 Chicago Daily Defender 7 A ug. 8/3 The slogan for this year's drive, ‘T C B—take care of business, go back to school’. 1977 M . T ‘‘‘[S in R. P. Rettig et al. Manny ii. 36/2 I am in the neighborhood maybe ten minutes and I get down with heroin. It was no problem to find the ounce man, look [sic] up one of my kits, and take care of business. 1994 Q. T A‘A.TT.‘ & R.

A EA‘y Pulp Fiction iii. 128 H olding the sword pointed downward, Takakura Ken-style, he disappears through the red curtains to take care of business. 2008 C . B LATCHF‘‘[ Black Hand xxv. 163 Take my word for it, the motherfucker's down. I'm not talking just about violence either. H e takes care of business real good, and he has downed a whole lot of motherfuckers in the last year. 1797 G. C ‘LMA. Heir at Law TTT . ii. 44 Business is business; and words you know butter no parsnips. 1858 W. M . T HACK[‘Ay Virginians I. i. 4 Business is business, my dear young sir. 1890 G. N. M C L [A.

How to do Business 152 It is a common saying in mercantile life that ‘Business is business’. This means that everything must turn upon the practical fact of dollars and cents. 1917 B. B ‘AL[y Business is Business in Rotarian A pr. 320 For Business is Business a fight for gold Where all that you do is fair. 2000 J. J. C ‘..‘LLy Layer Cake (2004) 3 We always make a ..fuss but we always do it. Business is business. 1884 Punch 12 A pr. 178/2 The true way she could show respect to H er M ajesty was by letting her shopmen carry on ‘business as usual’ for the benefit of H er M ajesty's subjects. 1914 H . W. W TLS‘.

Great War I. 84 ‘Business as usual’ was the motto of London. 2007 Daily Tel. 13 Nov. (Business section) B 6/1 H e attempted to convince shareholders and analysts it was business as usual. P22. [1816 W. W T‘T Let. 24 Sept. in J. P. Kennedy Mem. W. Wirt

(1849) I. 415 Business first, and then pleasure, is my maxim.] 1831 Ladies' Mag. 4 346 They plod on, anxious to reach their destination, with an air that seems to say, ‘Business before pleasure’,—‘A penny saved is a penny earned’, [etc.] 1876 H . A LI[‘ Shifting for Himself ii. 21 I must bid you good-night, John. Business before pleasure, you know. 1918 Atlantic Monthly Nov. 668/1 ‘V ery often we cannot even dine together, he is always in such a hurry!’ Business before pleasure. 1976 ‘R. H ‘‘K[‘ ’ & W. E. B UTT[‘w‘‘TH MASH goes to San Francisco (1977) xiii. 170 Oh, how nice! A nd I think about you, too.

But business before pleasure, as I always say. 2002 V . M C D [‘MT[ Last Temptation xxx. 360 ‘OK, business before pleasure,’ he said. ‘Let's go back to Berlin and make some plans.’ 1885–6 Origin, Growth, & Usefulness Chicago Board of Trade 261/1 They make a specialty of funeral work, as it is called in the business. 1929 Washington Post 1 Sept.

A 3/1 A n actor..naturally supposes that his accoutrement, as they say in the business, will be found in his dressing room. 1960 Sunday Times 11 Sept. 37/4 A t large jazz festivals the incursion of a minority of moronic roughnecks (known in the business as H erberts) is ruining the pleasure of the great majority. P19. Originally U.S. slang (originally in A frican-A merican usage). to take care of business: to do something in an effective or energetic manner; to take action to good effect. C f. TCB vb. at T n. Initialisms 1a.

P20. business is business: used to indicate that in financial and commercial matters one must not be influenced by friendship, sentiment, etc. P21. business as usual: used to indicate things will proceed normally despite difficulties or disturbances. a . everybody's business is nobody's business: see .‘B‘[y pron. and n. Phrases 2. b. (to be) nobody's business: see .‘B‘[y pron. and n. Phrases 3a. c. like nobody's business: see .‘B‘[y pron. and n. Phrases 3b. P23. Originally U.S. business before pleasure: work must be dealt with or duty attended to before a person can enjoy himself or herself. P24.

In phrases indicating the use of terminology or jargon associated with a particular trade or line of work, as as they say in the business, known in the business as, etc.

1982 B. S H[L[‘. Behaviour Modification iii. 60 Residential and hospital social work, where in the past, ‘train and hope’ programmes, as they are called in the business, have produced high levels of relapse. 1998 S. F ‘T[[ Bitter Pills T . i. 26 A t least 60 percent of all doctor visits end with a prescription—or a ‘script’, as they say in the business. 2008 Independent 10 Jan. 36/1 Drama-docs, as they are known in the business, are a grey area when it comes to revealing the truth. 1910 Trans. Worcester County (M ass.) Hort. Soc. 7 U nder any other business J. K.

Greene, reported for C ommittee on resolution on retirement of Secretary A din A . H ixon. 1935 G. K. B UCK.ALL Oldham's Guide to Company Secretarial Work (ed. 7) xix. 152 A genda .. 1. M inutes of last meeting .. 4. Overdue accounts ..9. A ny other business. 10. Next meeting. 1968 H . M . T AyL‘‘ & A . G. M .

M [A‘S Right Way to conduct Meetings (ed. 7) xiv. 94 No major matter should ever be put to the vote under ‘A ny other Business’. 2000 Keyways (M aster Locksmiths' A ssoc.) Feb. 37 A ny member wishing to raise any items under any other business are required to register their questions with the Senior Executive. 1503 in N. H . Nicolas Privy Purse Expenses Elizabeth of York (1830) 101 For his costes lyeng in London aboutes the Quenes matiers and busynesses. 1611 Bible (King James) Luke ii. 49 Wist ye not that I must be about my Father's business ? 1757 W. T H‘MPS‘.

Royal Navy-men's Advocate 13 (note) To preside ..over that consequential Branch of the King's Business. 1801 tr. ‘C . F. Damberger’ Trav. through Interior Afr. xii. 433 Some M oors, who, supposing me to be upon the king's business, made no attempt to detain me. 1919 G. R. B ‘‘w. Beyond Sunset x. 190 H is M ajesty's business, methinks, rests more seriously upon his courtiers than upon himself. 2002 K. W HTTAK[‘ Mad Madge (2003) ix. 168 The marquess of Ormonde—a courtier close to C harles II who often passed through A ntwerp on his master's business. P28. Noun phrases with of business as a postmodifier. a. 1617 F.

M ‘‘yS‘. Itinerary TT . iii. 160 Now for letters of busines [It. lettre di facende], no man is so blockish that cannot easily dispatch them; when he hath told the businesse, and bid farewell, all is done. But if letters of complement bee not beautified with inuention, they are dull. 1662 S. P [PyS Diary 3 Oct.

(1970) III. 212 It is a great folly to send letters of business by any friend that requires haste. 1771 Encycl. Brit. I. 620/2 M erchants are provided with a large book ..into which is copied verbatim every letter of business before it be sent off. 1862 J. W. J ‘yC[ Ecclesia Vindicata v. 211 Royal Letters of Business would be directed from the C rown, requesting the two C onvocations to take the necessary measures for the purpose proposed. 1908 Edinb. Rev. Oct. 407 John Paston was a good deal away, and his wife had to send him frequent reports as to business matters ...

H er letters were thus necessarily, in the first place, letters of business. 2006 Church Times 20 Oct. 21/2 The report made the historic recommendation that Letters of Business be issued to C onvocations .. to form..modifications relating to the conduct of Divine Worship. b. 1640 J. W A[Sw‘‘TH tr. A . C olmenero de Ledesma Curious Treat. Chocolate 18 There is another .. shorter and quicker way ..for men of businesse, who cannot stay long about it.

P25. any other business: matters not listed individually on the agenda of a meeting, and which are raised after the main business has been discussed; the heading on an agenda under which such matters are raised; abbreviated AOB. P26. there's no business like show business: see SH‘w BUST.[SS n. 1. P27. a person's business: work to be done or matters to be attended to in a person's service, or on his or her behalf. Now chiefly archaic and historical. letter of business n. (

a) a letter communicating information of some importance; (in later use) = business letter n. at C ompounds 5; (

b) Anglican Church (in plural, usually with capital initials) a document formerly issued by the C rown to the English C onvocations permitting them to prepare canons on a prescribed subject (now historical). [In quot. 1617 in M oryson's translation of his own Italian original.] ma n of business n. (

a) a man of businesslike habits, one skilled in business (in various senses) (now rare); †(

b) a man engaged in public affairs (obsolete); (c) (frequently with possessive adjective) a man who transacts a person's business, a business agent or (Scottish) a lawyer; (

d) a man engaged in commercial or business transactions, a businessman (now somewhat archaic).

1670 B P . G. B U‘.[T Let. in T. E. S. C larke et al. Life G. Burnet

(1907) III. v. 192 I am..resolved never to have anything to do more with men of business, particularly with any in opposition to the C ourt. 1712 R. S T[[L[ Spectator No. 466. ⁋3 I am a M an of Business, and obliged to be much abroad. 1753 D. H UM[ Ess. & Treat. (ed. 4) I. xvi. 157 Pericles, a man of business, and a man of sense. 1779 Mirror No. 32 The remonstrances of his man of business, aided by very urgent requests from me. 1857 H . T. B UCKL[ Hist. Civilisation Eng. I. xi. 629 If we were all men of business our mental pleasures would be abridged. 1861 E. B. R AMSAy Reminisc. Sc.

Life (ed. 18) vi. 232 In Scotland it is usual to term the law-agent or man of business of any party his ‘doer’. 1902 L. S T[PH[. Stud. of Biographer IV . v. 188 M any men of business..enjoy in strict privacy a little whimpering over a novel. 1916 tr. P. Bourget in E. Wharton Bk. Homeless 69 [H e] told me that his man of business was at the Dardanelles. ‘H is wife looks after my property in his place.’ 2005 D. C ‘UTCKSHA.K Around World in 80 Treasures 220 A n intent man of business scurries by. c. 1677 W. W yCH[‘L[y Plain-dealer T . 11 I am no V isiter, but a Woman of Business. 1726 W. R.

C H[Tw‘‘[ Voy. & Adventures Capt. R. Boyle 70 I had the M isfortune to be a Woman of Business, tho' young; for my Father had several V essels at Sea. 1816 La Belle Assemblée M ar. 117/1 M y aunt, ..a bustling woman of business, thought all time lost that was not spent behind her counter. 1922 L. S. L y‘.S & J. W TLS‘. Who's Who among Women of Calif.

I. 175 The evolution of M other Eve, of H elen,.. of Joan of A rc,..finds expression in the modern professional woman, the woman of business. 2008 Telegraph-Jrnl. (New Brunswick) (Nexis) 16 M ay B 1 [The story] is one that fascinates fellow men and women of business: the story of his ascent from the owner of one obscure gas station to one of the country's ..richest men. d. 1681 T. D [ L AU.[ Present State London v. 355 Letters go.. to Inns of C ourt, and places of business in Town ..10 or 12 times of the day. 1795 Universal Mag.

M ar. 201/2 H e may open a work-shop, a counting-house, an office, or any other place of business, and pursue his calling. 1872 Gentleman's Mag. A pr. 458 One whose place of business is situate immediately opposite to a branch of the ‘C o-op.’ Institution. 1942 E. F [‘B[‘ Saratoga Trunk (new ed.) vii. 119 It still closed its places of business at noon for a two-hour siesta. 2008 P. H [.SH[‘ Northern Clemency 569 The fourth floor more resembled the inside of a drinkers' den than a respectable place of business. e. 1693 J. L ‘CK[ Some Thoughts conc.

Educ. §117. 143 In the intervals between his hours of Business..he is not of himself inclin'd to laziness. 1739 Scots Mag. Dec. 611/1 It would be worth while to read to you there, now and then, in an evening, before the hours of business. 1830 Reg. Pennsylvania July 55/1 Tables..were spread, under the shade of the same beautiful trees which had protected the company during the hours of business. 1858 P. L. S TMM‘.[S Dict. Trade Products 269/2 Over-time, Over-work, extra labour done beyond the regular fixed hours of business. 1995 D. G. W [TH[‘[LL & I. R. A .

K M[T Town Life 140 H ours of business were regulated through bylaws. f. 1704 Answer of Merchants-petitioners 44/2 This Sum if entirely lost, could not have Prejudiced the Replicants [sc. those replying to the Trustees] as a H ouse of Business. 1799 Sporting Mag. June 157/1 H e took a grand house in Wimpole-street, ..his own house of business being at Lothbury. 1836 Q. Jrnl.

Agric. 7 No. 34. 165 On reference to one of the respectable houses of business in London ..they would readily name some trust-worthy person. 1900 Daily News 17 Oct. 6/2 H e was initiated at his father's house of business ..into the mysteries of cordwaining. 1981 C . N U.. Marguerite Clark 135 No storms ..had ever disturbed the limestone strength of these houses of business. g. woma n of business n. †(

a) a woman engaged in practical matters (obsolete); (

b) a woman who works in commerce or has a profession; = BUST.[SSw‘MA. n. pla ce of business n. a place where business is conducted, spec. a shop, office, or other commercial establishment. hours of business n. †(

a) the hours during which a person is occupied with business (obsolete); (

b) the hours in which a person, shop, office, etc., conducts business; = business hours n. at C ompounds 5. house of business n. now archaic = business house n. at C ompounds 1b.

1712 R. S T[[L[ Spectator No. 484. ⁋4 The best C onsolation that I can administer to those who cannot get into that Stroke of Business (as the Phrase is) which they deserve, is [etc.]. 1847 T. D [ Q UT.C[y Secret Societies in Tait's Edinb. Mag. A ug. 520/1 The goddess, and her establishment of hoaxers at Eleusis, did a vast ‘stroke of business’ for more than six centuries. 1862 J. H . B U‘T‘. Book-hunter 84 [People] who wanted to do a stroke of business with some old volume. 1904 J. C ‘.‘A[ Let. 29 M ay

(1988) III. 142 You know how he failed with Falk and yet managed to do a stroke of business afterwards. 1939 B. N ATA‘AJA. in Madras Tercentenary Commem. Vol. TE. xxxi. 251 A month later, the C ouncil themselves did a stroke of business on their own account. P29. 1679 J. D ‘y[[. Troilus & Cressida Pref. sig. a4 M anners never can be evident [in a comedy or tragedy], where the surprises of Fortune take up all the business of the Stage. 1763 D. G A‘‘TCK Let. 10 A ug.

(1831) I. 163 If you mean by the warmth of temper you have accused me of to M r. Johnson, a certain anxiety for the business of the stage, your accusation was well founded. 1897 G. B. S HAw in Sat. Rev. 13 Nov. 514/1 In ‘H amlet’ he is quite enthusiastic about naturalness in the business of the stage. 1942 Notes & Queries 12 Sept. 161/1 ‘Business of the Stage’ denotes the movements, groupings, vocal inflections, etc., of the players, which are settled at rehearsal. The modern term is ‘Production’. 2002 M .

P UCH.[‘ Stage Fright TTT . v. 128 C raig envisions an art of the theater that strategically ignores stage directions and thus prevents the writer from interfering in the business of the stage. C ‘I [‘UI[i C1. 1816 in Proc. Mass. Hist. Soc.

(1879) I. 262 The old C orner Store, which, like his father, he had made the centre of all his business operations. 1825 Edinb. Mag. & Literary Misc. A ug. 221/2 H e is fond of an intermixture of sociality with business-dealings. 1846 T. B. T H‘‘P[ Our Army on Rio Grande xix. 157 The inhabitants..became to rely upon the spontaneous productions of the soil, rather than upon any business investment, for their support. 1885 Bankers' Mag. Dec. 1111 We would suggest a greatly extended use of memo. forms for internal use and external communication to business customers. 1888 A . M ‘‘‘TS‘.

New Orleans & New South 53/2 A n accomplished and astute merchant, deservedly enjoying the confidence of the business community. 1890 in F. A . Saward Coal Trade 115 (advt.) A s indispensable as the financial and credit rating reports, the account books and other necessary paraphernalia of a properly conducted business office. 1898 D. O ST‘A.[[‘ Social Crisis iv. 121 It is claimed that this business strategy enabled this great oil company to control ninety-five per cent of the whole refining trade in this country. 1907 Electr. World 1 June 1113/1 They considered it a decided business bringer. 1932 W.

C ATH[‘ Obscure Destinies 23 But his neck, always clean shaved except in the business seasons, was not loose or baggy. 1944 J. H . B [..[TTS in R. Greenhalgh Pract. Builder xiii. 398/1 C osting abstracts are a simple means of classifying and allocating all business expenses to the actual item of work for which they have been incurred. 1954 P. G.

W ‘[[H‘US[ Jeeves & Feudal Spirit i. 7 She was in the middle of a very tricky business deal with the male half of the sketch. 1959 Times 1 June 17/4 Since the war the business aircraft has become as much a part of the A merican way of life as baseball or C oca-C ola. 1971 Russ. Rev. 30 49 H ighly altruistic in the beginning of his business relationship with Tolstoy. 2011 C .

M TLTT[LL‘ Murder at Transit ix. 59 It would give an ‘in’ to a company that was very ruthless in their business approach. b. stroke of business n. now archaic a piece, esp. a large or considerable amount, of business or trade; also figurative. h. way of business: see wAy n. 25a. 1 i. line of business: see LT.[ n. 28c. 2 j. order of business: see ‘‘[[‘ n. 12b. business of the sta ge n. Theatre stage action, esp. as opposed to dialogue; = sense 18. a .

General attributive and objective (now chiefly in sense 14a), as business approach, business bringer, business customer, business deal, business dealing, business investment, business office, business operation, business strategy, etc.

1846 Anglo Amer. 24 Oct. 13/1 H is adventures always found a good market, and his consignments safe and energetic factors. A ll this he attributed to his own business acumen. 1968 E. B ‘TLL Old Cotswold vi. 89 H e had little of the sharp business acumen that goes with the making of money on a big scale, but this is not evidence that he or his family were ever on the poverty line. 2005 Courier-Mail (Brisbane) 29 Jan. 10/1 Dale's true believers buy his personal-trainer packages for upwards of $12,000 each to learn his unique brand of business acumen. 1598 J.

F L‘‘T‘ Worlde of Wordes 123/3 Facendiére, Facendaro, a dealer in business affaires, a negociator, an agent, a dealer. 1789 Lady's Mag. 20 184 M r. Leveret had been one of those close men who seldom entrust their family with their business-affairs. 1873 F. H U[S‘. Journalism in U.S. xxxviii. 611 These journals, so recalcitrating to each other in their columns, so full of rivalry in their business affairs. 1948 E. E. S MTTH Triplanetary iii. 33 Like two high executives ..discussing business affairs during a chance meeting at one of their clubs. 2003 F.

S HAw Sweetest Thing 372 M y cousin was indeed sailing very close to the wind in his business affairs. 1831 Times 19 Dec. 6/3 Travelling through the country as a business agent. 1901 S. M [‘wT. & H . K. W [BST[‘ Calumet ‘K’ i. 15 A ll that remained was to wait until the business agent made the next move. 2002 C .

A .VTL‘TTT In Affairs of World vi. 172 ‘I find it requires great care, attention and activity to attend properly to a C arolina Estate,’ she noted to George M orly, her business agent in London. 1842 Knickerbocker July 99 A t first his sensitive heart found it a sore task to call upon his old acquaintances and former business-associates, to inform them that their notes were protested. 1927 N.Y. Times 28 M ar. 1/3 H enry M orgenthau ..and a group of business associates announced yesterday that they had purchased the control of the Photomaton. 2000 L.

C ‘A.[ Ninth Day of Creation 32 Rosen had gone into his ‘sell mode’, which he normally reserved for visiting business associates. 1824 H . G. S PAFF‘‘[ Gazetteer State N.-Y. (new ed.) 570/2 The important V illages ..formed a sort of business-centre for the trade of a vast extent of country. 1913 Sat.

Evening Post (Philadelphia) 22 Feb. 31/3 (advt.) In every important business center from Boston to 'Frisco you will find the sturdy Baker proving the supremacy of the electric over every other truck. 2003 UnWired M ay 8/2 Serving large populations in concentrated areas, such as downtowns, universities, and business centers. 1825 R. H . L [[ Mem. Life R. H. Lee I. 109 H e was either chairman, or a member ..of every miscellaneous business committee. 1945 Fortune M ar. 107/1 C arrying the approval of ..the Business C ommittee, the H eller report was released in January. 2003 L. F ‘wL[‘ Columbia Guide Amer.

Indians Great Plains v. 120 The C heyenne and A rapaho had a business committee..that incorporated elderly chiefs from all of the communities. 1849 E. G. H ‘LLA.[ Rev. & Ess. 350 Industry..is the basis of mental vigor and business-efficiency. 1926 A . H UXL[y Jesting Pilate TE . 316 Reduced to an Indian diet, A mericans would be a good deal less interested than they actually are in business efficiency, uplift and the C harleston. 2005 Wired M ay 152/3 Networks of suppliers, retailers and customers increased business efficiency. 1860 J. G. H ‘LLA.[ Miss Gilbert's Career vi. 106 M rs.

Ruggles, relieved by A rthur from a serious burden of care, was aware of his importance to her husband, not only as nurse, but as business executive. 1965 B. P [A‘C[ tr. E. Preobrazhensky New Econ. 189 The red managers, proletarian engineers, and business executives have no monopoly of the means of production. business a cumen n. business a ffa ir n. business a gent n. business a ssocia te n. business centre n. business committee n. business efficiency n. business executive n.

2011 N.Y. Times Mag. 2 Jan. 41/2 Today's lesson was SWOT analysis, by which business executives around the world assess a company's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. 1881 Cincinnati (Ohio) Daily Gaz. 1 Nov. 7/1 Gen. A lexander is in no sense a rate cutter, but he is emphatically a business getter, as the increase in the tonnage of the L. & N., under his management, clearly proves. 1886 Chronicle (N.Y.) 18 Feb. 72/1 The company's latest statement shows that its officers and agents are industrious business getters. 1925 Amer.

Mercury Dec. 394/1 The contact man is only indirectly—sometimes not at all—a business-getter. 2008 I. C HAF[TV Ben's Way Out xix. 110 Some lawyers are very good business getters while others don't do well with clients. 1825 Italian Legend in Oxf. Q. Mag. 1 56 Reminiscences of early love, which his business-life and business-habits had all been unable to efface. 1876 Amer. Agriculturist 35 14/2 A ..few farmers who have been brought up to business habits keep such accounts. 1907 Pennsylvania Med. Jrnl. 11 382 The irregularity of the hours of our work tends to break up even the best business habit. 2010 T.

Z [.[[‘ God goes to Work 196 The Newtonian business habits of companies and individuals..destroy the productivity of their businesses. 1823 Times 22 A pr. 1 To let ... A commodious business house situate ..[in the] best trading part of the town. 1935 Boys' Life M ay 42/4 (advt.) In a recent five months 205 Strayer graduates obtained positions with leading business houses. 1992 B.

U .Sw‘‘TH Sacred Hunger xvii. 128 The taverns and tap-houses frequented by clerks and warehousemen and the small functionaries of business houses. 1820 National Recorder (Philadelphia) 28 Oct. 230/1 H is course appeals so directly to the business interests of all who would be distinguished at the bar or in our deliberative assemblies, that it cannot ..fail to be numerously attended. 1922 S. H TIH China's Place in Sun ii. 20

Whereas, formerly, the chief concern of A merican business interest was increased production, in the future it will be necessary to consider of first importance the matter of sale and distribution. 2002 E. B UCHA. Revenge of Middle-aged Woman (2003) xiv. 179 When X avier died two years ago, he had numerous business interests, the bakery, property and everything. 1825 Italian Legend in Oxf. Q. Mag. 1 56 Reminiscences his early love, which his business-life and business-habits had all been unable to efface. 1868 W. C ‘LLT.S Moonstone II.

TT. 148 Female Boards ..drew the breath of their business-life through the nostrils of M r. Godfrey. 1951 M . M C L UHA. Mech. Bride 137/2 People ..could maintain an intimate link with ordinary social and business life. 2006 Daily Tel. 18 A pr. 19/1 [H e] was distinctly un-Quakerish in every aspect of his personal and business life. 1807 Politics Georgium Sidus 84 A gents, who, with the address and the plain business management of any money-lender or auctioneer, are ready to find to venal electors the purchaser who will give the highest price. 1924 Amer. Econ.

Rev. 14 290 The essential theme of this volume is the separation of business management from the technical-industrial management of physical production. 2008 G. M wAKTKAITL[ Afr. Immigrants in S. Afr. TT. 144 A fter matriculating from Kabulonga H igh School in Lusaka, Zambia, she went on to study business management at a local college. 1867 Round Table 1 June 342/1 It is pleasant to see the grim faces of great professional and business magnates relaxed now and then. 1946 Chicago Defender 9 Feb. 5/4 With the assistance of the State Department, the 40-year-old business magnate secured these privileges. 1991 J.

K T.I[‘M Local Govt. & Politics in Brit. xii. 207 Those dominating both society and the municipal institutions were the local business magnates. business getter n. business ha bit n. business house n. business interest n. business life n. business ma na gement n. business ma gna te n. business meeting n.

1801 Monthly Mag. Dec. 406/1 The Royal Exchange,..which was, about the middle of the last century, erected to favour the business-meetings of the merchants. 1950 Life 2 Oct. 116/2 H e almost never goes out in the evening, even for dinner, unless it is incidental to a business meeting. 2008 B. B LA.K[.SHTP Daisy on Wheels xii. 75 While we're in New York, M om schedules a couple of business meetings with clients. The appointments don't go well, she comes home frowning. 1902 Lippincott's Monthly Mag. Oct. 445 She had sought the director; the business mogul; the great John C overton; the machine. 1959 Flying Mag.

Oct. 50/1 Those business moguls who still think private planes are just-so-much-tomfoolery for crazy millionaires and wild-eyed kids. 2011 A . L [ET.[ King vi. 192 M any of C anada's most astute business moguls, such as the president of the C anadian Pacific Railway, Edward Beatty, regarded the downturn in the economy as a temporary ‘adjustment’. 1836 C . A . B A‘T‘L Infl. Ministry at Large in City of Boston 47 The lax business-morality whose hurtful vapors are breathed in like the surrounding air. 1902 Ann. Amer. Acad.

Polit. & Social Sci. 19 65 To ..stop all speculation in railway shares, would seem to be a distinct advance in the direction of business morality. 2009 C . L A.[ & J.

P ‘‘B[‘T National Capitalisms, Global Production Networks viii. 199 The business morality of their western buyers and the ability to trust them is, for Turkish suppliers, strongly related to their behaviour regarding price negotiation and to their payment methods. 1840 Bristol Mercury 17 Oct. 8/2 The sacrifices which an active and intelligent man makes, of time, and business opportunities, in becoming a Town- C ouncillor. 1938 Far Eastern Surv. 7 234/2 There is more to this than the mere question of business opportunity. 2011 A . F.

H y[[ Empires, Nations & Families ii. 126 This organized, legal, and successful venture represented a true competitor for M cLoughlin's ambitions, but also a business opportunity. 1861 Brit. Farmer's Mag. July 27/1 Other owners, ..observing what is done by the new and business owners, have arrived at the conclusion that they also can obtain something more for their farms than they have done. 1962 Times 25 June 16/7 H ow different is the motivation of an executive, with his long-term interest in salary growth, from that of a business owner on the one hand, or a manual worker on the other. 2011 M . D TX‘.

Triumph Beyond Meas. xvi. 180 Too often I see business owners who think their company can run itself. This sounds like a rookie mistake, but I see it most often from business owners who have already enjoyed some success. ?1806 J. T. K [A‘.[y Kearney's Cases 7/1 The secretary of the defendant corporation issued a bogus stock certificate ... This certificate he gave to his business partner. 1938 Rotarian A pr. 55/1 (caption) A Rotary father-and-son combination with half a world between it is that of Fred Burley, London, England, and A rthur Burley, Sydney, A ustralia. They're business partners, too. 2006 A .

S UMM[‘S One Train Later v. 60 M r. Smith and M r. Gardner-Brown, both pushing thirty-five, are two business partners who seem to cradle a fantasy to become real estate barons. 1823 Brit. Press 10 Sept. It has often occurred to me, that men in trade adopt this plan for their business practice. 1921 Jewelers' Circular 7 Dec. 103/3 There are general merchants who handle jewelry as a side line, ..who do not have the high ideals of strict business practice of the average jeweler. 2006 P. W TLLTAMS -F ‘‘S‘.

Building Houses out of Chicken Legs T . i. 35 Though we are left devoid of a number of intimate details that would shed more light on their roles as early entrepreneurs, we are made aware of some of the tensions and contestations that surrounded their business practices. 1841 N.-Y. Spectator 14 July 1/1 This was a simple business proposition. 1909 ‘O. H [.‘y ’ Options (1916) 11 H e had been used to having his business propositions heard of. business mogul n. business mora lity n. business opportunity n. business owner n. business pa rtner n. business pra ctice n. business proposition n.

2007 Sharp Edge June 60/2 Finchatton's business proposition ..is diametrically opposed to their rivals. 1835 Chambers's Edinb. Jrnl. 8 A ug. 217/1 If he can get a real business reason for passing her abode, it is—almost as good as a call. 1856 F. E. S M[[L[y Harry Coverdale's Courtship lxv, in Sharpe's London Mag. Feb. 122/1 For business reasons, Kate, who is left sole executrix, must immediately return to England. 1929 R. S. L y.[ & H . M . L y.[ Middletown xix. 307 In the main, business men join lodges today for business reasons. 2006 G.

M ALKA.T Londonstani ix. 97 We figure if it were an arranged marriage, the two sides' parents'd probly already be mates or they'd wanna be mates for business reasons. 1818 Blackwood's Edinb. Mag. Feb. 612/2 In the old business style. 1841 T. C A‘LyL[ On Heroes i. 37 Snorro ..almost in a brief business style, writes down, [etc.]. 1997 N.Y. Times 25 July C 1/5 M r. Scott's take-no-prisoners business style ..has provoked a backlash of opposition. 1806 R.

S [MPL[ Charles Ellis I. i. 4 H is father had completely wound up his business transactions. 1920 Atlantic Reporter 109 9/1 Plaintiff did not offer an original book of entries of business transactions, regularly kept. 2001 S. H AwKT.I Universe in Nutshell vi. 170 In the near future, most business transactions will probably be made..via the World Wide Web. 1833 Amer. Railroad Jrnl. 23 M ar. 180/2 (table) Business Travel and Transportation of Goods between Philadelphia and Frankford, H olmesburg and other places on the Line. 1922 Amer.

Druggist June 46/1 H otel charges, meals and other sundry expenses incident to business travel. 2011 T. R [.K Journey for Revenge TT . 109 We should have no problem getting across the border and I have a number of passport entries to Russia with my business travels. 1814 Monthly Mag. July 578/2 A n improvement of great importance to the pleasure as well as to the business traveller in that part of Devonshire. 1940 Life 23 Dec. 45/2 Business travelers also choose the safety, the comfort and low cost of Greyhound trips. 2008 Y. K T.I tr. O.

Wikström Icon in my Pocket i. 16 A n experienced business traveller, who has obviously been more or less forced by his wife to go on this trip, complains that people are so ‘awkward’. 1833 H . M A‘TT.[AU Parish x. 159 A shly came home at dusk one afternoon ..from a business trip to the next town. 1961 I. M U‘[‘CH Severed Head i. 14 I had in fact very rashly promised to take her with me on a business trip. 2006 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 1 Nov. A 1/2 No homework to oversee. No bedtimes to bird-dog.

For many working mothers, business trips become mini- vacations. 1934 Hartford (C onnecticut) Courant 3 June TT . 1/4 A bility to enact the role of a business tycoon on the screen doesn't necessarily carry with it the ability to transfer those same talents to real life. 1972 Jrnl. Contemp. Hist. 7 92 The tendency to exaggerate the personal responsibility of public personages, politicians, and business tycoons and the like, for major decisions. 2010 D. B. M ‘‘.

Mind Sweeper ii. 14 Everyone who knew him had always thought he'd shake the dust of Pleasant Grove off and move to the big city to become a business tycoon or something. 1838 Let. 12 Dec. in S. S. Bell Cases decided House of Lords on Appeal from Courts of Scotl.

(1843) I. 522 In June 1837, you were introduced to us by M r Robert Watt, as being about to visit C anada ..on a business venture. business rea son n. business style n. business tra nsa ction n. business tra vel n. business tra veller n. business trip n. business tycoon n. business venture n.

1920 C . H . W A‘[ Theme-building xix. 379 Proposition ought not to be a substitute for every conceivable sort of business venture or difficulty or undertaking or chance or investment or puzzle. 2006 Wall St. Jrnl. 5 Sept. A 22/1 H er business venture offers a window into what happens when a celebrity opens a..retail business. 1820 Gentleman's Mag. June 525/1 In a business view, the C rusades were the means of vastly extending the knowledge which is indicative of civilization. 1922 System Jan. 15/1 H e doubts if then [sc. twenty-one years ago] ‘any man would truthfully have given his business views or experience.

Business was carried on mysteriously.’ 2009 P. L ‘‘A.I[ Shipping Strategy v. 108 (heading) Juxtaposing traditional and radical business views. a1861 A . H . C L‘UIH Dipsychus TT . i, in Lett. & Remains (1865) 170 M en's business-wits, the only sane things. 1920 M . S AMU[L tr. S. A sch Uncle Moses TTT . i. 180 H e was employing all his business wits to get a synagogue for his townsfolk. 2004 G. J ‘.[S Men of Tomorrow (2005) v. 87 U sing his charm and business wits to stitch together connections ..to keep the money flowing in. 1816 S. D A.A Disc. Hist.

First Christian Church Marblehead 11 It is a law of providence well accredited in the business world, that ordinary industry should be rewarded with the ordinary fruits of industry. 1906 H . R [..‘L[S Out of Ashes xiv. 201 H e has been elected President of the Blanker Banking C o., which means that his rating is first-class in the business world. 2009 N.Y. Times Mag. 20 Sept. 18/1 In the business world we now find unconferences and unmarketing. 1940 Amer. Econ.

Rev. 30 134 It is this common-sense attitude that has made modern politics essentially a business-oriented politics. 1965 Financial Times 12 A pr. 92/5 The role of advertising in a business-orientated society. 1982 Daily Tel. 23 Nov. 19 (advt.) Our C omputer C entres offer you a full line of TRS-80 peripherals, software, and other business-related accessories, including telephone dialers and answerers. 1987 Jrnl.

Palestine Stud. 16 33 Rule by the military and business-based elements linked to U .S. corporations. 1998 Oxfordshire Bull. (C PRE) Sept. 3/3 C oncerns about the role of non-elected, business-dominated Regional Development A gencies. 2003 D. L. S C‘TT Wall St. Words (ed. 3) 6 The amount of taxable income that remains after certain allowed business-related deductions..are subtracted from an individual's gross income. C2. 1827 Souvenir 11 July 13/3 Twilled bombazets are much worn for business coats and pantaloons. 1856 B. B ‘UCHT[‘ My Parish 70 Tom Ball's anticipations, therefore, of stepping into M r.

C arsdell's business-shoes were unceremoniously frustrated by what he always considered a personal unkindness and spite. 1888 Clothier & Furnisher (N.Y.) Dec. 53/2 For a business shirt I prefer one that opens at the back. They wear better than the others, and look just as well. 1919 I. E. M ACKAy Mist of Morning xi. 185 Rosme rose, brushing a crumb from her neat business skirt. 1953 Wisconsin State Jrnl. 2 June T . 3/8 Premier Tamasese of the Pacific Island of Samoa arrived in London wearing a sarong under a business jacket and carrying a smartly-furled umbrella. 2003 J. R. L [..‘.

Mailman T . iv. 209 A few have ‘dressed down’ and wear shorts and golf shirts; others are in suit and tie or a business skirt and jacket. b. 1854 Racine (Wisconsin) Daily Morning Advocate 15 A ug. 3 C adet Business Suits of elegant style and finish ... C adet C ollege Suits [etc.]. 1904 ‘A . D AL[ ’ Wanted: Cook iv. 66 M r. Tamworth ..affected that horrible garb known as a ‘business suit’, with a rude, short coat. 1932 E. W TLS‘.

Devil take Hindmost iv. 30 A prosaic, gray business suit. 2001 National Geographic M ar. 84/1 A garrulous man in dark glasses and rumpled business suit. business view n. business wit n. business world n. c. Forming adjectives in combination with a past participle, as business-based, business-oriented, business-related, etc. a . attributive. Designating an item of clothing or outfit that is designed or suitable for wear in a business environment, now esp. in an office, as business shirt, business shoe, etc. business suit n.

1842 Bristol Mercury 21 M ay 4/3 (advt.) Second-rate qualities, recommended for business wear. 1891 Pacific Educ. Jrnl. June 205/1 The illustration displays a novel and at the same time suitable garb for business wear. 1922 Amer. Exporter Dec. 40/1 It [sc. the soft collar] kept on growing, working its way from the country club and outing negligee to business wear. 1993 Canad. Living Feb. 112 C lothing: casualwear, knitwear, denim and some businesswear; petite to plus sizes. 2010 T.

O'D [LL Fragile Beasts xxi. 292 H er business wear was equally colorful but in the form of pencil skirts and fitted suit jackets adorned with some time of beading, embroidery, or lace at the lapels and cuffs. C3. 1862 I. D. G Uy[‘ Hist.

Chicago 144 It is necessary for our business students to learn in these schools how to carry the theories of business into practical life. 1891 Science 27 Nov. 305/2 This is not only a text-book for business colleges and the business courses of schools and academies, but it is desirable for the desk of the business man. 1936 Clearing House 11 117/1 Students who complete a Business M ajor with a grade of B receive a ‘C ertificate of Recommendation’ in the field in which they have shown marked competency. 1951 N.Y.

Times 29 A pr. [ 9/4 New York C ity firms will provide work experience to business teachers enrolled as advanced students in the business education department of Teachers C ollege, C olumbia U niversity. 1996 C . A .SHAw Seven Moves i. 2 She took a business degree and, with money she made waitressing during semester breaks, ..she bought a piece of a trendy restaurant on A rmitage. 2006 K. H A‘T Butterflies in May xi. 96 Tom is a business professor at Illinois State U niversity, and Ellen works part-time at a library. b. 1862 Janesville (Wisconsin) Daily Gaz. 11 Sept.

Bryant & Stratton's National C hain of M ercantile C olleges. The public will be glad to learn that these business colleges are still in active operation. 1903 A . D. M C F AUL Ike Glidden in Maine xvi. 124 H e had just graduated from a business college, and claimed to know how to do business ‘in a business-like manner’. 1998 Guardian 28 Nov. (Weekend Suppl.) 52/4 From the battlements, a young guide proudly pointed out..the new nursing, agricultural and business colleges. 1859Business School [see sense 14d]. 1966 ‘N.

B LAK[ ’ Morning after Death i. 19 ‘What do you actually do in the Business School?’ ‘There are courses in economics, management, salesmanship, commercial history, theory of exchange, the ethical aspect of business—all that kind of thing.’ 2009 Atlantic Monthly Dec. 33/3 In business school, my fellow students and I became fans of the idea of ‘consumption smoothing’. 1913 E. V . S H[PA‘[ Sci. Auction Bridge 58 Business bids are made with the intention of trying to win a contract. 1913 E. V . S H[PA‘[ Sci. Auction Bridge 115 The business redouble is made when able to fulfil a doubled contract. 1925 A . E. M .

F ‘ST[‘ Auction Bridge 46 A double of four or more is always a ‘business’ double. 1927 Observer 6 M ar. 25 This Business Pass is one of the most formidable weapons. It converts the Informatory Double into a Business Double. 1999 B. S [AI‘AM & M . S MTTH 25 Bridge Convent. 21 The traditional ‘penalty’ or ‘business’ double is still very handy. C5. 1852 Daily Picayune (New Orleans) 14 Nov. While one [literary style] is represented by the giants of pure intellect, the other will be heralded by the masters of the art of business administration and address. 1904 Wisconsin Alumni Mag.

Nov. 71/2 A course in business administration extending throughout the sophomore, junior, and senior years has been added to the course of study. 2011 E. M . L ‘IA. Dentistry's Business Secrets i. 5 Investing sufficient time educating ourselves in the fundamentals of business administration is essential. business wea r n. a . General attributive in sense 14d, as business course, business degree, business student, business teacher, etc. business college n. business school n. C4.

Bridge. attributive with sense ‘called or made for the purpose of gaining a penalty’, ‘that gains a penalty’ (see sense 14e), as business double, business pass, business redouble, etc. business a dministra tion n. the process of running a business, now esp. as the subject of a programme of study at an institution of higher education; cf. M.B.A. n. at M n. Initialisms 2a.

1884 Photographic News 1 A ug. 493/1 I found afterwards that I had entertained an A ngel—a business A ngel—unawares, for I have done nearly £300 from that negative since. 1925 Proc. Amer. Soc. Civil Engineers Oct. 249 A s Langley, a great astronomer, had been his scientific inspiration, so William Thaw, a great philanthropist, became his business ‘angel’ and gave him the much needed financial advice and assistance. 1984 Inc. (Nexis) M ar. 143 Kramer finds most of his deals through friends and business associates. That, says a study by U niversity of New H ampshire professor William E.

Wetzel Jr., is precisely how most business angels operate. 2004 P. R [TVT. Fiends Reunited ii. 75 ‘Business angels’, those speculative investors who, instead of being taxed at forty per cent on the interest their pile of gold was accruing, preferred to take a tax-free punt on a new business if the business plan was ‘sweet’. 1821 Louisville (Kentucky) Public Advertiser 25 A pr. 1/5 Bank Notes, C hange Tickets, Business C ards, &c. &c. will be engraved and printed. 1864 C . D TCK[.S Our Mutual Friend

(1865) I. T. xvii. 158 Bland strangers with business-cards meeting said servants in the streets. 1959 T. S. E LT‘T Elder Statesman TTT . 102 H ere's my business card With the full address. 2005 D. C ‘wT[ Owen Noone & Marauder 90 H e gave me a business card and told me to give him a call on M onday. 1968 N.Y. Times 9 Nov. 3 (advt.) Business casual or casual business suits ... Suits that complement your business acumen and commend your savoir-faire. 1988 Toronto Star (Nexis) 25 June K 5 Friedlander's fashion philosophy revolves around ‘three styles of dressing’: H igh authority or power dressing ...

A day - to-day look she has labelled ‘business casual’ ... A day-to-evening concept. 1990 St. Petersburg (Florida) Times (Nexis) 29 Jan. (Business section) 2 They were told the dress code was ‘business casual attire’. 1994 Record (Bergen C ounty, New Jersey) (Electronic ed.) 2 Oct. We are finding more and more companies that started it on Friday in the summer, then went to Fridays all year long, and then to allowing business casual day in and day out. 2009 L.

A L[XA.[[‘ Bikini Diaries 269 Early thirties, she'd bet—no tie, but a nice shirt and jacket that told her he probably worked in a business-casual office nearby. 1830 J. F. C ‘‘P[‘ Water Witch II. xii. 244 The enquiries that appeared so much in character as that of reading the communications of his business correspondents. 1846 Zion's Herald & Wesleyan Jrnl. 2 Sept. 140/5 The following facts, stated by a business correspondent of the N. E.

Puritan, may at least suggest profitable reflection to such as, having the Bible in their hands, ..still look for pecuniary profit in violating its divine command. 1913 Printers' Ink 13 Nov. 64/2 In effect, a reporter, specializing on business news for private circulation, the average business correspondent serves several firms in non-conflicting lines. 2001 R. G ‘ASSBy Kinship & Capitalism vi. 243 M ichael M itford, writing to a business correspondent, signed ‘I am with all kind love your real friend’. 2004 B. A .[[‘S‘.

News Flash i. 17 On A ugust 20, 2003, while respected C NN business correspondent Rhonda Schaffler was giving a live update from the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, the A tlanta control room added music to her report. 1986 Computerworld 8 Oct. 19/4 M any in information systems management saw users building business-critical systems on hardware and software acquired, owned and managed by the users themselves. 1998 Times 25 June (A ppointments section) 11/2 (advt.) If you want a role where you can make a measurable difference, join a company where your work is acknowledged as business-critical. 2009 C . M .

P A[I[TT Project Success Method i. 11 The effectiveness of The Project Success M ethod has been proven by its application to thousands of our clients' complex, business-critical projects since 1983. business a ngel n. a person who supports a business financially; (now) spec. a person who invests private capital in a small business, usually in return for a proportion of the company equity; cf.

A.I[L n. 7b. business ca rd n. a small printed card containing the bearer's name, occupation and status, contact details, etc., given or exchanged for the purposes of business. business ca sua l adj. and n. originally and chiefly North American (

a) adj. designating clothing or a style of dress that is less formal than traditional business dress, but is intended still to appear professional and businesslike; (of a workplace) having a relatively relaxed dress code; (

b) n. this style of dress. business correspondent n. (

a) a person with whom one corresponds on matters of business, or with whom one has regular business relations; (

b) a person employed (typically by a newspaper, television programme, etc.) to report on business-related news. business-critica l adj. crucial to the operation of a business. business cycle n. = trade cycle n. at T‘A[[ n. and adv. C ompounds 3. C f. economic cycle n. at [C‘.‘MTC n. and adj. C ompounds.

1858 Charleston (S. C arolina) Mercury 15 Feb. There is a sort of business cycle of the same length of time. 1909 Q. Jrnl. Econ. 23 711 The C anadian ratios, likewise, show certain divergencies ..which ..seem to be connected with the course of business cycles. 2001 B. L T[TA[‘ Future of Money 252 The fact that the quantity of Terra in circulation would be counter-cyclical to the business cycle would therefore tend to counteract the pro-cyclical nature of the conventional money system. 1796 J. B. G TLCH‘TST Gram.

Hindoostanee Lang. 324 The first day of the Fuslee [i.e. business] year there, provided the A strologers who are consulted, consider it a lucky business day. 1843 V . E. H ‘wA‘[ Rep. High Court Mississippi 6 479 The business day of the bank was between or within the business hours, and unless demand was made within those hours, it was not made on the day. 1946 S. J. P [‘[LMA. Keep it Crisp 199 They seem to spend the business day mousing around each other. 1997 Calif.

Lawyer July 87/3 (advt.) Skips Located within seven business days. 2002 Chicago Daily Herald (Nexis) 29 Nov. 3 C arpentersville residents have until the end of the business day Tuesday to submit an apply for the village trustee seat. 1832 Christian Reg. (Boston) 21 July 115/2 The Journal of C ommerce remarks that few of the cases reported are in the business districts of the city. 1962 Life 23 Feb. 28/2 C hicago was due for a renaissance. From the early '20s until the mid-'50s not one major building went up in the business district. 2011 C .

B ‘‘w. -S y[[ Parents of Invention v. 58 From an expensive suite at the M LC C entre in the heart of Sydney's business district, the company had relocated to the high-tech enclave of St. Leonard's. 1879 O. H . S T‘ATTA. That Business of Mine: Amer. Ladies' Industr. Guild I. 162 Business doctors sufficiently skilled C ould bring prosperity. 1899 Drake University Bull. 3 93 A lawyer is a business doctor. 1901 Daily Express 6 A ug. 6/2 A very novel profession has been lately started in the C ity.

It may be called that of the business doctor. 1969 Sunday Mail Mag. (Brisbane) 4 M ay 2/7 H e's pretty busy as a ‘Business Doctor’ there—runs a ‘think-tank’. 2008 P. S MTL[y Cool Cache 268 I did not know business doctors made house calls. 1884 Galveston (Texas) Daily News 3 Jan. The sword was poised with the business edge toward the fence-owners. 1935 Antiquity 9 211 The business edge of the chisel-ended arrow. 2009 K. Y ‘U.I Blood Bayou 389 H is thumb stroked across the business edge of the knife blade. 1878 Daily Rocky Mountain News (Denver) 11 Dec.

Denver will go on increasing in population, influence and trade, until it holds in its hands the keys to a business empire, greater in extent and richer in resources than Napoleon ever saw. 1968 M . D UB‘FSKy When Workers Organize iii. 46 A trade-union offered no proper prospect for aggressive individuals who dreamed of possessing their own business empires. 2010 O. A . T ‘IU.

All that Glitters iv. 62 H e hoped that one day when he was grown, Francis would take over his vast business empire, so he made efforts to groom him appropriately. 1855 Knickerbocker June 574 A majority of the C hinese who have dealings with us outsiders, speak what is called by them ‘pigeon or business English’. 1864 Punch 10 Sept. 111/1 By instantly assigning a good business reason, and in good business English—‘she was one of those first-rate customers that settled an account without discount’. 1925 Amer.

Mercury Dec. 451/2 It bears all the earmarks of vague recollections of night-school classes in ‘business English’. 1951 Amer. Speech 26 25 The pidgin of H awaii differs markedly from the pidgin English (‘business English’) of the C hina coast. business da y n. (

a) a day on which business is conducted; (

b) chiefly North American that part of a day during which business is conducted; = w‘‘KT.I [Ay n. 2. business district n. an area of a city or town containing a significant number of business premises. business doctor n. now rare a person who gives business advice professionally. business edge n. colloquial (originally U.S.) the sharp or cutting edge of an implement or tool; cf. BUST.[SS [.[ n. business empire n. a collection of businesses with shared high-level management, esp. one ultimately under the control of one individual. business E nglish n. (a) = pidgin English n. at PT[IT. n. C ompounds 1; (

b) a style of English suited or adapted to use in business; (in later use esp.) a form taught to people (usually non-native speakers) who wish to conduct business in English.

2010 M .

C LAyP‘L[ Controv. in ELT 87 If they really needed to make phone calls, present facts and figures and enter into negotiations, they would have signed up for Business English. 1848 Mechanics' Mag. 5 A ug. 123/1 Of course we cannot look ..for cultivated intellect, nor still less for a high code of business-ethics. 1898 Speaker 26 Nov. 645/2 ‘I have to sell what my customers buy; but I never call margarine butter.’ ‘I suppose that is the business ethic of it.’ 1937 Times 23 M ar. 23/5 Its business ethics in the past have been founded upon careful management, combined with the policy of giving the utmost assistance to home-ownership. 2007 C .

G ‘[yLT.I & U . M iLL[‘ X-kit Business Stud. v. 67 Business ethics are established to protect shareholders and owners, employees, suppliers and customers from the unscrupulous behaviour of individuals. 1948 Boston Daily Globe 25 Oct. 1/7 (heading) Dewey to pledge labor, business friendly term. 1983 PR Newswire (Nexis) 21 July There is always a temptation to pull up stakes and move to a more ‘business-friendly’ state. 2001 M .

S T[[L Reasons to be Cheerful xi. 129 M ellish was ahead of his time as a Labour man, in that he was extremely business-friendly and would have nothing to do with the loony left image of the time. 1840 Morning Herald (N.Y.) 15 Feb. 1/3 She is a smart business girl. 1918 M . A LL[‘T‘. Business Girl i. 3 She gave a quick glance round the little cubby hole which represented the pride of the business girl—a room of her own. 1964 R. C ‘A.[ Sergeant & Queen 52 There, she could be artfully blended with ‘business girls’, with the prostitutes who flourished outside the..command post. 1987 J. S T[E[.S Taking Revol.

Home ii. 67 The aims of the [M odern Women's] club were to provide a rest-room and meeting place..for ‘business girls’. 2000 W. E. B. G ‘TFFT. Secret Honor iv. 357 ‘You think they're whores?’ ‘I would say there is a very strong probability that two young women sitting in a hotel bar smiling at two obvious foreigners are business girls.’ 1912 Mag. Wall St. Sept. 248/1 We find that the Stock M arket Graphic falls rapidly before the Business Graphic has attained its greatest height. 1984 Which Micro?

Dec. 20/2 The four programs..consist of a wordprocessor, a spreadsheet, a data base manager and a business graphics designer. 2007 L. U . F ULL[‘ & R. C . F ULL[‘ Photoshop CS3 Bible i. 9 Business graphics, such as graphs, charts, and diagrams that reflect data or show how things work. 1969 Business Week 20 Dec. 70/2 (heading) A critic twits business gurus. 1994 Wilson Q. 18 75/1 The nanny corporation is an unfortunate but predictable perversion of the remedies business gurus have prescribed for corporate A merica since the late 1970s. 2009 R.

B LA.CHA‘[ Creating Wealth with Small Business viii. 449 Business gurus were starting to talk about the emergence of a different kind of economy ..based on information handling technologies that would revolutionize business and business models. 1825 Boston Weekly Rep. 17 Dec. 1/4 It is just such a Business Communication, as is to be expected from the Business Head of a Business Government. 1832 J. B. F ‘AS[‘ Highland Smugglers III. x. 256 What, by H al's own confession, would you have done without Glenvallich's good business head? 1921 Pop. Sci.

M ay 13/2 They have since become court stenographers, reporters, assistants to business heads and in many cases executives of prominent concerns and institutions. 1922 M . W T[[[M[‘ Winona on her Own vi. 142 You know the boys don't want to run the store. They haven't business heads; they want to be doctors, both of them. 2004 Black Belt A ug. 68/1 Deeply suspicious of businessmen, he is himself the business head of what is one of the biggest and most successful karate systems in Japan. 2010 R.

M C C ‘UM Globish (2011) iii. 71 Typically, it was not just a shrewd business head that inspired this move. business ethic n. a moral principle relating to business; (in plural) a set of such principles conceived of as forming a code of conduct in business. business-friendly adj. favouring or conducive to business concerns or interests. business girl n. (

a) a woman or girl who works in business (now somewhat archaic); (

b) colloquial and euphemistic (originally U.S.) a prostitute; = w‘‘KT.I IT‘L n. 2. business gra phic n. originally U.S. a graphical representation of data or statistics relating to business; (now chiefly in plural) computer-generated graphics of this type, esp. used as a visual aid in a presentation. business guru n. a person with influential ideas or theories about business. business hea d n. (a) = business leader n.; (

b) an aptitude for business; cf. H[A[ n. 2b. 1

1767 Adventures of Author I. iii. 21 This constant application to study out of business hours, had given his master the highest opinion of him. 1839 C . D TCK[.S Nicholas Nickleby xl. 390 You will be surprised ..to witness this in business hours. 1906 J. G ALSw‘‘THy Man of Prop. 243 Incredible quantities of Forsytes, whose chief recreation out of business hours is the discussion of each other's affairs. 2007 Brit. Archaeol.

Sept. 20/3 One snippy secretary refused admittance..during business hours on a weekday. 1892 Printers' Ink 31 A ug. 267 (advt.) A ll read it, and that is why it is the Great Business Incubator. There are other papers, of course, but there is but one A tlanta Journal. 1984 Irish Times 11 Feb. 8/4 ‘Business incubator’ units where first-time entrepreneurs could work on their ideas..before proceeding to the full production stage. 2003 S. D.

S T‘AUSS Business Start-up Kit xiv. 174 While all business incubators have the same goal in mind—helping to launch successful businesses—each is unique in its own way because many incubators specialize. 1914 Insurance Monitor A ug. 353/2 U se and occupancy insurance—or business interruption insurance, as it is sometimes termed—which is designed to provide for maintenance of revenue at a plant where the production has been stopped, either in whole or in part, as the result of fire. 1967 N.Y. Times 17 Jan. 44/3 The building was insured for $29,650,000, with a $3-million business interruption policy. 2003 K. N.

M y[‘S Total Contingency Planning for Disasters (ed. 3) v. 113 The extent to which your organization is dealing with disaster prevention and disaster recovery issues will affect business interruption premium rates. 1956 Canad. Aviation Oct. 86/1 The four-jet plane thus becomes the world's first business jet yet to be ordered. 1981 Science 27 Feb. 905/1 M ost orders for business jets and commuter aircraft (in the short-haul mid-size range) are now held by manufacturers in Europe. 2010 D. G ‘L[ST[T.

Sharing Orion xxv. 245 We can take my dad's business jet, it's at the airport corporate center, they always keep gas in it in case he needs to leave in a hurry. 1848 Leeds Mercury 23 Sept. 4/2 H is melancholy death leaves M r. Disraeli the oratorical leader of the Opposition, but perhaps M r. Bankes the business leader. 1868 E. B U‘‘TTT Thoughts & Notes at Home & Abroad 303 So it is with manufacturers, shipowners, and other business leaders of the land. 1930 T. P A‘S‘.S tr. M . Weber Protestant Ethic i. 35 Business leaders and owners of capital,..are overwhelmingly Protestant. 2004 R. A .

B [.[TS Intentional Entrepreneur ix. 167 If John V oeller was the technical visionary behind BV SG, Gerald White was to become its business leader and the driver of BV SG's quest for an independent role. 2011 N.Y. Times 24 Oct. A 16 The Treasury secretary..began talks with business leaders in January on a corporate tax overhaul. 1766 J. R ‘S[ Let. 8 A pr. in A . Tayler & H . Tayler Ld. Fife (1925) ii. 31 I will have business letters also to write. 1872 ‘G. E LT‘T ’ in J. W. C ross George Eliot's Life

(1886) III. 159 M r. Lewes makes a martyr of himself in writing all my notes and business letters. 1914 W. O w[. Let. 6 M ar. (1967) 237 I make money for this by doing a few translations ..of business letters. 2000 Jrnl. Econ. Soc. Hist. Orient 43 36 V aluable evidence ..has been furnished by the famous Jewish business letters from the C airo geniza. 1823 Yorks. Observer 11 Jan. 83/1 There is your ..laudable business-looking horse. 1839 C .

D TCK[.S Nicholas Nickleby ii. 9 A business-looking table, and several business-looking people. business hours n. the hours in the day during which commercial or other business is conducted; opening or office hours. business incuba tor n. originally U.S. something which facilitates the growth of businesses; (in later use) spec. a professional service that facilitates the growth of new businesses by providing resources, support, and advice. business interruption n.

Insurance attributive designating a type of insurance which covers financial losses incurred by a business during a period in which it is unable to operate normally, as the result of a fire or another insurable risk. business jet n. a (usually small) jet aircraft used for business travel. business lea der n. (

a) a person who manages the business operations of an organization, political party, etc.; (

b) a person in charge of a business; a prominent or influential person in the field of business. business letter n. a (usually formal) letter in which business is reported or transacted. business-looking adj. having an appearance suggestive of business; that looks businesslike.

1922 Bull. Pharmacy Feb. 56 A ll the cards bore his personal signature. H e used no typewriting, thus avoiding a business-looking postal. 2010 D. S CH‘w Internecine 7 They saw a business-looking guy remove a business-looking case. 1880 Freeport (Illinois) Daily Bull. 10 A pr. 4 (advt.) The A rcade ... A first class business lunch always on hand. 1926 S. L [wTS Mantrap xxv. 289 I don't really know a soul ..except for meeting them at business lunches. 1954 L.

M AC N [TC[ Autumn Sequel XTT . 76 The foregone C onclusion of a business lunch. 2004 Vanity Fair (N.Y.) Oct. 158/1 One has to skulk into the interior of two vehicles after a business lunch or date. 1884 St. Louis Globe-democrat 05 Oct. 22/5 The business luncheon room down-stairs ..and the ladies' parlor up-stairs have all been handsomely refitted. 1919 Good Housek. Sept. 221/2 (advt.) C offee..M en like it,—they drink it at breakfast,—at the business luncheon,—at the conference dinner—and at the club banquet. 1963 P.

M ‘y[S Murder à la Mode v. 83 H e knew enough of the protocol of business luncheons .. not to be surprised ..that Goring studiously avoided all reference to the matter in hand until the coffee arrived. 2010 J. N [UF[L[ Lois Marshall 83 She continued, of course, with the ..business luncheons. 1917 E. P ‘U.[ Let. 28 Dec. in Pound/Little Rev. (1988) 171 Do you want to business-manage? It is inconceivable to me that any sane person should want to business manage anyt