busybody
Americannoun
-
busybodies
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of busybody
Explanation
A busybody is a nosy, meddling person, who's very interested in what other people say and do. If you're a busybody, you can't help offering advice to friends, whether they want it or not. Busybodies are known for trying to help with situations in which they're not necessarily welcome or needed. You could describe your mom as a busybody if she asks prying questions and tries to orchestrate your romantic life. The word busybody comes from a now-obsolete meaning of busy, "prying" or "meddlesome."
Vocabulary lists containing busybody
With the Fire on High
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"Oedipus the King" by Sophocles
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The Book of Unknown Americans
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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.
See Examples For:
Her book abounds with busybody advocacy groups, donor advisory networks and consultancies run by know-nothing 20-somethings.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
That was all fine for Graham: He got his fix with bonus cable-news bookings and participated in some debates, and then—phew!—was able to return to being a busybody in the Senate.
From Slate ● Jul. 14, 2026
Elizabeth Kelly, best known for playing busybody Nellie Ellis in EastEnders, died peacefully in Scarborough on 31 December, her agent Scott Marshall Partners said.
From BBC ● Feb. 4, 2026
Your siblings and any other busybody family members would have no say.
From MarketWatch ● Jan. 26, 2026
I’m not proud of it—I don’t normally speak to people in that manner, and especially women—but damned if I was going to let some busybody do-gooder foil my outing.
From "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen
Apparently, other parents decided they didn't want these busybodies telling them how to educate or raise their kids so they ran against them and won.
From Salon ● Nov. 10, 2023
This particular Planned Parenthood is where high school girls in my town would go if they needed birth control and didn’t want any busybodies ratting them out if they were spotted at the local clinic.
From Washington Post ● Jan. 27, 2023
He found an old house in a small town full of busybodies and expects to live peacefully there.
From New York Times ● Oct. 5, 2020
Don’t let yourself get distracted by a bunch of interfering busybodies whose bad opinions of you might be annoying but largely have nothing to do with you.
From Slate ● Jan. 18, 2020
The saying that people who have nothing to do become busybodies is not the only truth.
From "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou
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.
