businesslike
Americanadjective
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conforming to, attending to, or characteristic of business.
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efficient, practical, or realistic.
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capable but unenthusiastic.
adjective
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efficient and methodical
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earnest or severe
Other Word Forms
- unbusinesslike adjective
Etymology
Origin of businesslike
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But Dmitriev felt his businesslike rapport was breaking through.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 29, 2025
The senior Ukrainian source told AFP that the tone of rhetoric between the White House and Kyiv was now "very businesslike."
From Barron's • Oct. 16, 2025
No crowns or robes, with the King looking businesslike in a suit.
From BBC • May 27, 2025
He might therefore follow the inclinations of certain of his key economic advisers like transition leader Lutnick, who favor a more pragmatic, businesslike relationship with China.
From Salon • Dec. 28, 2024
On the other hand, Europeans viewed treaties as legal documents that focused on ending hostilities and as businesslike transactions where “the winner” got something from “the loser.”
From "An Indigenous People’s History of the United States" by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
