businessman

American  

[biz-nis-man] / ˈbɪz nɪsˌmæn /

noun

• businessmen
  plural

1. a man regularly employed in business, especially a white-collar worker, executive, or owner.

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businessman British  

/ ˈbɪznɪsˌmæn, -mən /

noun

1. a person, esp a man, engaged in commercial or industrial business, esp as an owner or executive

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Usage

There is a gender-neutral form, businessperson , but it does not appear to be very widely used. The plural business people is quite widely used, and if you wish to avoid being gender-specific, you could try recasting your sentence to use the plural

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• businessmen
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of businessman

First recorded in 1705–15; business + man

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

businessman businessmen

"I really want to be a businessman and fashion designer also."

From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2026

Magic Johnson is relentlessly positive, a quality that has served him well as a player, a businessman and even while living with HIV since 1991.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 12, 2026

However, on 1 October, more than two weeks after first becoming ill, the businessman boarded another domestic flight to Beni, before continuing his journey to Kasindi, a busy border town.

From BBC ● Oct. 10, 2026

Maniscalco is an incredible businessman, and a pioneer in the craft of shouting a premise and then pausing until the audience agrees it’s a punchline.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026

I held my breath and waited to see how they rolled with the idea that the guy they went trick-or-treating with was a businessman who had, as Kenny would put it, serious coin.

From "Lawn Boy Returns" by Gary Paulsen

At its head, prosecutors say, are two businessmen who have been on the run since 2024 and are wanted by Interpol, Mirel Mertiri and Klodian Zoto.

From Barron's ● Oct. 8, 2026

Rent-seeking doesn’t require corrupt businessmen scheming with corrupt politicians.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 23, 2026

As The Times wrote, “hundreds of motion picture celebrities and wealthy society and businessmen and women in Palm Springs appealed to Los Angeles for aid.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2026

Regarding these allegations, Betancourt's lawyer suggested he was being targeted because of his associations with the other young, brash Venezuelan businessmen.

From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2026

She peered out at the passengers crowding the terminal: tired-looking families sprawled in seats, dark-suited businessmen sprinting down the aisle.

From "Found" by Margaret Peterson Haddix

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