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busy work

Idioms  

  1. Activity meant to take up time but not actually be productive. For example, We have to put in an eight-hour day, even if we do nothing but busy work. [c. 1840]

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.

For businesses, that might look like a way to free up workers from busy work so the company can do more.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 1, 2026

Vergara shared that their relationship faded as she and Loeb had difficulty finding time for each other amid their busy work schedules.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 17, 2023

"Of course, we sometimes encounter such situations amid such busy work."

From BBC • Apr. 27, 2023

She tried to resume her busy work, but I pressed her for an explanation.

From Salon • Feb. 26, 2023

And even with their busy work schedules, my dad was still able to find time to coach Kia's soccer team, and my mom still chaperoned Kia's school field trips and attended all his games.

From "Americanized" by Sara Saedi

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.