business as usual

Idioms  

1. The normal course of some activity, as in The fire destroyed only a small section of the store, so it's business as usual. This term originated as an announcement that a commercial establishment was continuing to operate in spite of fire, construction, or some similar interruption. It had been extended to broader use by 1914, when Winston Churchill said in a speech: “The maxim of the British people is ‘Business as usual,’” which became a slogan for the rest of World War I. Today it may be used in this positive sense and also pejoratively, as in Never mind that most civilians are starving to death—the ministry regards its job to be business as usual. [Late 1800s]

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

business as usual

Meanwhile, the press pool acted like it was business as usual.

From Salon ● Oct. 16, 2026

"Very clearly it cannot be business as usual at Stormont."

From BBC ● Oct. 11, 2026

For labels like Brunello Cucinelli that already sell most of their goods to the ultrarich, things will be business as usual.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026

In the meantime, it’s business as usual for the Angels.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026

This may have been business as usual in my life, but I had short hair.

From "Schooled" by Gordon Korman

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