mean business
IdiomsExample Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"My back was against the wall the first time, this time we just had to go out there and show that we mean business, which is what we did tonight."
From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2026
Drones and anti-drones mean business for a host of defense startups and established players.
From Barron's ● Feb. 11, 2026
“Union baristas mean business and are ready to do whatever it takes to win a fair contract,” Eisen said in a statement.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 5, 2025
Nearly a week after taking the keys to the battered media company, Ellison and his top executives met with reporters at the Paramount Pictures lot Wednesday to show that they mean business.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2025
Math was my specialty—you spend enough time at the cash register and you learn to love numbers, because each and every one means dollars and cents, and enough of those mean business is booming.
From "City of the Plague God" by Sarwat Chadda
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
