businessman

American  

[biz-nis-man] / ˈbɪz nɪsˌmæn /

noun

plural

businessmen

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

---

businessman British  

/ 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

Etymology

Origin of businessman

First recorded in 1705–15; business + man

Example Sentences

She also won Trump’s approval for a prisoner swap that freed an Italian journalist held in Iran in exchange for an Iranian businessman arrested in Italy and wanted by the U.S.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026

The billionaire businessman has said the Texas facility, unveiled in March, will eventually produce chips with a computing power capacity of more than one terawatt per year for both companies.

From Barron's • Apr. 10, 2026

As part of the transaction, Raiffeisen intends to sell Addiko’s subsidiaries in Serbia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro to Alta Pay—a shareholder linked to Serbian businessman Davor Macura.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 9, 2026

The businessman however was never a permanent resident of the then Swiss Cottage, living there 10 years before selling it as a business, Richardson continued.

From BBC • Apr. 7, 2026

Rounding out the large party were three doctors, two ministers, a military general, a former secretary of the US Navy, more writers and editors, plus a businessman or two.

From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock