Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

businessman

/ˈbɪznəsmæn/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: 3.95 in modern English

Syllables: busi-ness-man
IPA: /ˈbɪznəsmæn/

15

Scrabble Score

11

Letters

3

Syllables

8

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A man in business, one who works at a commercial institution.

Example Sentences

"I'm not a businessman, I'm a business, man"
"BERTIE Ahern's explanation that he received an envelope stuffed with £8,000 in cash following a whip-around by a group of Manchester-based businessmen was branded untrue by the Mahon Tribunal."
"Needless to say the obituaries for Hefner, even if they acknowledge the seaminess, have been full of encomia for his great deeds: Hef the vanquisher of puritanism, Hef the political progressive, Hef the great businessman and all the rest."

Etymology

From business + -man. Displaced earlier merchant, ultimately from Latin mercāns (“merchant, buyer”).

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˈbɪznəsmæn/
British English: /ˈbɪznəsmən/

Inflected Forms

businessmen (plural)

Derived Forms

agribusinessman agrobusinessman businessmanlike

Phrases

businessman's LSD businessman's lunch businessman's risk businessman's special businessman's trip

Frequently Paired Words

entrepreneur

Synonyms

businessperson man of affairs

Questions

How do you pronounce businessman?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈbɪznəsmæn/.
What does businessman mean?: A man in business, one who works at a commercial institution.
Where does businessman come from?: From business + -man. Displaced earlier merchant, ultimately from Latin mercāns (“merchant, buyer”).

How to pronounce businessman

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “businessman”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈbɪznəsmæn/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “businessman”.
Repeat and practice — Say “businessman” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.