Find the opposite to the word busy

English Synonyms and AntonymsRate these synonyms:5.0 / 1 vote

1. busy

   Active refers to both quickness and constancy of action; in the former sense it is allied with agile, alert, brisk, etc.; in the latter, with busy, diligent, industrious. The active love employment, the busy are actually employed, the diligent and the industrious are habitually busy. The restless are active from inability to keep quiet; their activity may be without purpose, or out of all proportion to the purpose contemplated. The officious are undesirably active in the affairs of others. Compare ALERT; ALIVE; MEDDLESOME.

   Antonyms:
   dull, heavy, idle, inactive, indolent, inert, lazy, quiescent, quiet, slow, sluggish, stupid

   Synonyms:
   active, agile, alert, brisk, bustling, diligent, energetic, expeditious, industrious, lively, mobile, nimble, officious, prompt, quick, ready, restless, sprightly, spry, supple, vigorous, wide awake

   Preposition:
   Active in work, in a cause; for an object, as for justice; with persons or instrumentalities; about something, as about other people’s business.

Princeton’s WordNetRate these antonyms:3.3 / 3 votes

1. busyadjective

   actively or fully engaged or occupied

   «busy with her work»; «a busy man»; «too busy to eat lunch»

   Antonyms:
   not intrusive, bone-idle, unoccupied, faineant, slothful, unintrusive, bone-lazy, lazy, work-shy, otiose, inactive, idle, unengaged, leisured, plain, lackadaisical, indolent

   Synonyms:
   in use(p), busybodied, meddling, meddlesome, interfering, engaged, officious, fussy

2. busy, fussyadjective

   overcrowded or cluttered with detail

   «a busy painting»; «a fussy design»

   Antonyms:
   lazy, plain, not intrusive, lackadaisical, idle, indolent, work-shy, slothful, leisured, unoccupied, bone-idle, bone-lazy, unengaged, faineant, otiose, unintrusive, inactive

   Synonyms:
   engaged, busybodied, particular, meddlesome, picky, in use(p), interfering, meddling, finical, cross, bad-tempered, grumpy, grouchy, crabby, crabbed, finicky, fussy, officious, ill-tempered

3. interfering, meddlesome, meddling, officious, busy, busybodiedadjective

   intrusive in a meddling or offensive manner

   «an interfering old woman»; «bustling about self-importantly making an officious nuisance of himself»; «busy about other people’s business»

   Antonyms:
   work-shy, not intrusive, unoccupied, otiose, slothful, lackadaisical, lazy, faineant, bone-idle, idle, plain, indolent, unengaged, leisured, unintrusive, bone-lazy, inactive

   Synonyms:
   interfering, busybodied, meddling, meddlesome, fussy, engaged, officious, in use(p)

4. busyadjective

   crowded with or characterized by much activity

   «a very busy week»; «a busy life»; «a busy street»; «a busy seaport»

   Antonyms:
   not intrusive, lackadaisical, leisured, lazy, faineant, slothful, inactive, work-shy, idle, unintrusive, plain, bone-idle, unoccupied, bone-lazy, unengaged, indolent, otiose

   Synonyms:
   in use(p), busybodied, meddling, meddlesome, interfering, engaged, officious, fussy

5. busy, engaged, in use(p)verb

   (of facilities such as telephones or lavatories) unavailable for use by anyone else or indicating unavailability; (`engaged’ is a British term for a busy telephone line)

   «her line is busy»; «receptionists’ telephones are always engaged»; «the lavatory is in use»; «kept getting a busy signal»

   Antonyms:
   slothful, idle, unoccupied, work-shy, plain, inactive, not intrusive, unengaged, otiose, lackadaisical, bone-idle, indolent, faineant, lazy, bone-lazy, unintrusive, leisured

6. busy, occupyverb

   keep busy with

   «She busies herself with her butterfly collection»

   Antonyms:
   plain, otiose, indolent, unengaged, faineant, slothful, idle, work-shy, bone-idle, unintrusive, bone-lazy, inactive, unoccupied, lazy, leisured, lackadaisical, not intrusive

   Synonyms:
   take, invade, reside, occupy, engage, lodge in, concern, worry, use up, engross, interest, fill, absorb

Synonyms, Antonyms & Associated WordsRate these synonyms:1.5 / 2 votes

1. busyadjective

   Synonyms:
   occupied, engaged, employed, engrossed, diligent, industrious, sedulous, active, intrusive, officious, meddlesome

How to use busy in a sentence?

1. Ismail Olad:

   I heard a huge crash at the busy junction and as I ran, I heard another blast at a restaurant ahead of me. The whole place was covered by smoke.

2. Dolly Parton:

   Don’t get so busy making a living that you forget to make a life.

3. Dean Hopkins:

   Diclegis allowed Kim to get back to some of her normal activities, kris explained that this really helped her get back to her commitments and busy schedule.

4. Photographer Ken Hermann:

   All the other sellers — they are so busy, so just convincing them to go near the river to get their portrait done and spend maybe 15 minutes of their time was a challenge, because every minute they’re not standing in the flower (market), they lose money.

5. Imelda Celine Hanson:

   She’s a busy physician and has her own needs, and is still willing to take the time out when she already needs a lot, but she’s still willing to give a lot.

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