businessman

[biz-nis-man]

noun

plural

businessmen 

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

businessman

/ ˈbɪznɪsˌmæn, -mən /

noun

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

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of businessman¹

First recorded in 1705–15; business + man

Example Sentences

A white businessman who moved south from L.A. has daughters who worry when they go into L.A. and see a black person.

From Los Angeles Times

"I'm an ordinary person, a businessman," he says.

From BBC

He caught the eye of Bill Montgomery, a retired businessman and Tea Party activist more than 50 years his senior, who took Kirk under his wing.

From BBC

The team time trial on stage five was also disrupted when the Israel-Premier Tech team, owned by Israeli-Canadian businessman Sylvan Adams, were stopped on the road by a group of protesters holding Palestinian flags.

From BBC

Her husband is a businessman and philanthropist who helped broker the controversial al-Yamamah arms deal in the 1980s.

From BBC