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busybody

[biz-ee-bod-ee]
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noun, plural bus·y·bod·ies.
  1. a person who pries into or meddles in the affairs of others.
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Origin of busybody

First recorded in 1520–30; busy + body

Synonyms

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snoop, pry, meddler, Nosy Parker; gossip, blabbermouth.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

buttinskyrubberneckmeddlersnoopeavesdroppersnooperfinkintrudergossiptattletaletroublemakerscandalmongeryentanewsmongerfussbudget

Examples from the Web for busybody

Historical Examples

  • Maria is the only one that knows, and she says I'm a busybody.

    Harper's Young People, June 15, 1880

    Various

  • Bessie is bigger than I am, but she isn't a busybody at all.

  • Some busybody has been reporting my conduct on a certain day.

    Under Western Eyes

    Joseph Conrad

  • You will give our friends here the impression that I am a busybody.

  • You'd have married me last fall if some busybody hadn't filled your ears with scandal.

    Quin

    Alice Hegan Rice

British Dictionary definitions for busybody

busybody

noun plural -bodies
  1. a meddlesome, prying, or officious person
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Derived Formsbusybodying, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for busybody

n.

"meddlesome person," 1520s, from busy (adj.) in the otherwise-obsolete sense "prying, meddlesome" + body "person."

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper