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

Etymology

Origin of businessman

First recorded in 1705–15; business + man

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

businessman businessmen

The son-in-law of Indian billionaire businessman Lakshmi Mittal, he had been a director and co-owner of Queens Park Rangers for 18 years before relinquishing his stake in the club last month.

From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026

He wasn’t sure, but he was a businessman, he told me.

From Slate ● Aug. 14, 2026

Hichilema, a businessman who won office in 2021 on his sixth attempt, has pursued market-friendly reforms, abolished the death penalty and sought to restore investor confidence.

From Barron's ● Aug. 10, 2026

For anyone keeping score, that leaves Trump’s publicly stated resume including businessman, president, golf-course owner — and, apparently, one of the world’s foremost grass experts.

From Salon ● Aug. 9, 2026

Cyrus Field, the businessman who spearheaded the laying of the first telegraph cable under the Atlantic Ocean, had befriended the Garfields long before the shooting.

From "Ambushed!" by Gail Jarrow

Built shortly before World War I to complement the Left Bank’s Le Bon Marché department store, the hotel hosted visiting tourists, businessmen, families and conventions of professionals from all over Europe.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026

That’s because the group bought the team in 2010 for an estimated $480 million from American businessmen Tom Hicks and George Gillett.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 10, 2026

The two often present, especially in court documents, as simple businessmen just trying to make money.

From Salon ● Jul. 20, 2026

He says he is asking for the public's support following allegations he did not properly declare donations from two businessmen.

From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026

A group of businessmen from the chamber of commerce had tried to persuade Arthur to run for the Washington state legislature.

From "Snow Falling on Cedars: A Novel" by David Guterson