business end
/ˈbɪznɪs ˌɛnd/
Word Rarity
Common
Frequency: Zipf frequency 5.31 in modern English
14
Scrabble Score
11
Letters
2
Syllables
7
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
The part of an object (chiefly a tool or weapon) that is physically used for its operation, rather than some other part such as the part by which it is held.
noun
The part of an activity, period of time, etc., which is most important and produces the significant result.
Example Sentences
- "The improvements of the town have been nearly stationary for several years past; but the construction of the Ohio Grand canal through it, has given new life and activity to its business end improvements."
- "The place had risen so rapidly in the hands of its founders, as to make their heads a little unsteady. […] Their minister was a popular man, and they relied on him to carry forward the religious end of the enterprise. The business''' end,—the heavier,—they were willing to carry themselves."
- "staring down the business end of a [calibre of pistol here]"
- "The business end of a hammer is known as the head."
- "Indeed, it [the Speaker's Gallery] is universally agreed to be a place of a very disagreeable description, though certainly preferable to that in which "Strangers" are placed. You find yourself at so great a distance from the Speaker's, or business end of the House, that you cannot distinctly recognise the features of a single Member."
- "Speed by now was now down to 25 m.p.h., but that universal tool, the insulated screwdriver, with its business end gingerly applied to the relay coil, enabled us to keep going as far as Grantham, where a more permanent remedy could be effected."