busybody

  • 1Busybody — Bus y*bod y ( b[o^]d [y^]), n.; pl. {Busybodies} ( b[o^]d [i^]z). One who officiously concerns himself with the affairs of others; a meddling person. [1913 Webster] And not only idle, but tattlers also and busybodies, speaking things which they… …

    The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • 2busybody — 1520s, from BUSY (Cf. busy) + BODY (Cf. body) person …

    Etymology dictionary

  • 3busybody — [n] nosy, impertinent person backseat driver*, butt in*, buttinsky*, eavesdropper, fink*, fussbudget, gossip, intermeddler, intruder, meddler, newsmonger*, nosey parker*, rubberneck*, scandalmonger*, sidewalk superintendent*, snoop, snooper,… …

    New thesaurus

  • 4busybody — ► NOUN ▪ a meddling or prying person …

    English terms dictionary

  • 5busybody — [biz′ēbäd΄ē] n. pl. busybodies a person who mixes into other people s affairs; meddler or gossip …

    English World dictionary

  • 6busybody — [[t]bɪ̱zibɒdi[/t]] busybodies N COUNT (disapproval) If you refer to someone as a busybody, you are criticizing the way they interfere in other people s affairs. [INFORMAL] Some busybody tipped off the police, and they arrested someone …

    English dictionary

  • 7busybody — UK [ˈbɪzɪˌbɒdɪ] / US [ˈbɪzɪˌbɑdɪ] noun [countable] Word forms busybody : singular busybody plural busybodies informal showing disapproval someone who is very interested in other people s private lives and activities and tries to get involved in… …

    English dictionary

  • 8busybody —    Used since the sixteenth century to describe someone who is meddlesome, and takes an unwanted interest in other people’s affairs. ‘Little busybody’ is said to a child aged six by an older boy in Villette, by Charlotte Brontë. In The Pleasure… …

    A dictionary of epithets and terms of address

  • 9busybody — noun Someone who interferes with others; one who is nosy, intrusive or meddlesome. Se that none of you suffre as a murtherer or as a thefe or an evyll doar or as a busybody in other mens matters. Syn: marplot, meddler, kibitzer, nosy parker …

    Wiktionary

  • 10busybody — bus|y|bod|y [ bızi,badi ] noun count INFORMAL someone who is very interested in other people s private lives and activities and tries to get involved in them in a way that is annoying: She s such an interfering busybody …

    Usage of the words and phrases in modern English