Busy in Different Languages
Discover 'Busy' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'busy' is a common term that holds significant meaning in our daily lives. It signifies engagement in various activities, work, or social events, often indicating a full schedule. The concept of being busy is not only limited to the English language but is also prevalent in many cultures around the world.
Historically, the term 'busy' has been used to describe a state of activity as early as the 15th century. Its cultural importance has grown over time, often seen as a symbol of productivity and success. However, in some contexts, being too busy can be perceived negatively, indicating a lack of work-life balance.
Understanding the translation of 'busy' in different languages can provide valuable insights into how various cultures perceive and prioritize time and work. For instance, in Spanish, 'busy' translates to 'ocupado' (oh-koo-PAH-thoh), while in French, it is 'occupé' (o-kuh-PAY). In Mandarin Chinese, 'busy' is '忙' (máng), and in Japanese, it is 'occupied' or 'ビーズィ' (biizii).
Explore the list below to learn more about the translations of 'busy' in various languages and cultures.
Busy
Busy in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | besig | ||
| The word 'besig' shares its origin with 'busy' and means 'at work' or 'engaged' in Dutch. | |||
| Amharic | ስራ የሚበዛበት | ||
| In Amharic, ስራ የሚበዛበት can also mean "full of work" or "having a lot to do". | |||
| Hausa | aiki | ||
| "Aiki" can also mean "trouble" or "problem" in some contexts in Hausa. | |||
| Igbo | na-arụsi ọrụ ike | ||
| The Igbo phrase "na-arụsi ọrụ ike" (literally meaning "doing heavy work") connotes the idea of being extremely busy. | |||
| Malagasy | be asa | ||
| The word "be asa" also means "to be doing something" or "to be occupied". | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | tanganidwa | ||
| The word "tanganidwa" in Nyanja can also refer to something that is difficult or tiresome to do. | |||
| Shona | ndakabatikana | ||
| The Shona word "ndakabatikana" can also mean "occupied" or "involved in an activity." | |||
| Somali | mashquul | ||
| Mashquul in Somali can also mean 'preoccupied' or 'engaged in an activity'. | |||
| Sesotho | phathahane | ||
| Phathahane is also a town in South Africa that is named after the Tswana word for "many trees". | |||
| Swahili | busy | ||
| The Swahili word "busy" can refer to physical movement or mental preoccupation | |||
| Xhosa | uxakekile | ||
| Uxakekile can also mean 'occupied', 'involved in', or 'engaged with'. | |||
| Yoruba | nšišẹ | ||
| "Nšišẹ" can also mean "to be engaged in an activity" or "to be involved in something." | |||
| Zulu | matasa | ||
| The word 'matasa' in Zulu can also refer to the bustling activity of a crowd or the chaotic movement of objects. | |||
| Bambara | degu | ||
| Ewe | le dɔ wɔm | ||
| Kinyarwanda | ahuze | ||
| Lingala | mosala mingi | ||
| Luganda | bize | ||
| Sepedi | tsene fase | ||
| Twi (Akan) | adaagye nni hɔ | ||
Busy in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | مشغول | ||
| The word "مشغول" can also mean "preoccupied" or "engaged" in Arabic. | |||
| Hebrew | עסוק | ||
| In Hebrew, the word "עסוק" can also mean "engaged" in a conversation or otherwise occupied. | |||
| Pashto | بوخت | ||
| The Pashto word "بوخت" (busy) is thought to derive from the Proto-Iranian root "*buxtā-," meaning "to be pressed, burdened, or cramped." | |||
| Arabic | مشغول | ||
| The word "مشغول" can also mean "preoccupied" or "engaged" in Arabic. | |||
Busy in Western European Languages
| Albanian | i zënë | ||
| The Albanian word "i zënë" is also used to describe a person who is "distracted" or "occupied with other thoughts". | |||
| Basque | lanpetuta | ||
| The word "lanpetuta" is a compound, derived from "lan" ("work") and "petuta" ("incessantly") in Basque. | |||
| Catalan | ocupada | ||
| Originally, "ocupada" meant a pregnant woman in Catalan as the word derived from Latin "occupare", meaning "to fill, to occupy. " | |||
| Croatian | zaposlen | ||
| The word "zaposlen" in Croatian is derived from the Proto-Slavic word *zapolno, meaning "filled" or "full". | |||
| Danish | travl | ||
| The 13th-century word "travl" meant "difficulty" or "affliction", and not until the 19th century did it acquire its present meaning of "busy". | |||
| Dutch | druk | ||
| The Dutch word "druk" may originate from the term "drucken" in Middle Low German, meaning "to press" or "to weigh down." | |||
| English | busy | ||
| The word "busy" comes from the Middle English word "besie," which means "occupied," and is related to the Old English word "bisgian," which means "to be occupied." | |||
| French | occupé | ||
| "Occupé" can also mean "engaged" in the sense of being in a relationship | |||
| Frisian | drok | ||
| The Frisian word "drok" likely derives from the Middle Dutch "droch" or "droech" meaning "sad" or "sorrowful". | |||
| Galician | ocupado | ||
| In Galician, "ocupado" has an alternate meaning, "possessed by spirits", a usage unique to the language. | |||
| German | beschäftigt | ||
| The word "beschäftigt" is derived from the Old High German word "biscafti", meaning "assigned to a task" or "burdened with work". | |||
| Icelandic | upptekinn | ||
| "Upptekinn" in Icelandic originally meant "to be fully occupied with work," but it has since come to mean "busy" more generally. | |||
| Irish | gnóthach | ||
| The word "gnóthach" also means "a small thing" or "a trifle" in Irish. | |||
| Italian | occupato | ||
| "Occupato" in Italian derives from the Latin "occupare," meaning "to hinder" or "to prevent," and thus can also mean "engaged" or "involved." | |||
| Luxembourgish | beschäftegt | ||
| "Beschäftegt" can also mean "engaged" or "involved" in a figurative sense, such as being engaged in a conversation. | |||
| Maltese | għandi x'nagħmel | ||
| "Għandi x'nagħmel" literally translates to "I have something to do" and is often used interchangeably with "busy". | |||
| Norwegian | travelt | ||
| The Norwegian word "travelt" is also occasionally used to describe a person who is talkative or chatty. | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | ocupado | ||
| Portuguese "ocupado" comes from past participle of Latin "occupare" ("seize, take up"), whence occupation, opaque, preoccupy. | |||
| Scots Gaelic | trang | ||
| In Gaelic the word 'Trang' can also mean 'close', 'tight' or 'oppressive'. | |||
| Spanish | ocupado | ||
| "Ocupado" can also be used to describe a place or object that is taken or in use. | |||
| Swedish | upptagen | ||
| The Swedish word "upptagen" literally means "taken up", referring to one's time or attention being occupied. | |||
| Welsh | prysur | ||
| The noun "prysur" can also mean "haste" or "hurry". | |||
Busy in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | заняты | ||
| The word "заняты" in Belarusian can also mean "occupied" or "engaged". | |||
| Bosnian | zauzeto | ||
| The word "zauzeto" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word "zajeti", which means "to take" or "to occupy". | |||
| Bulgarian | зает | ||
| The word "зает" in Bulgarian originally meant "taken" or "occupied". | |||
| Czech | zaneprázdněný | ||
| The word "zaneprázdněný" comes from the Old Church Slavonic word "zana" meaning "on" and "prazdný" meaning "empty", hence its original meaning was "not empty", i.e. "full" or "occupied". | |||
| Estonian | hõivatud | ||
| Hõivatud is a compound word, meaning "occupied" or "taken possession of". | |||
| Finnish | kiireinen | ||
| Kiireinen originates from Finnish "kiire" meaning 'hurry' or 'haste', and is thus not related to the English word "keen" of the same spelling. | |||
| Hungarian | elfoglalt | ||
| Elf is a supernatural being from German folklore, so the Hungarian word 'elfoglalt' could be literally translated as 'elf-occupied' or 'bewitched by elves'. | |||
| Latvian | aizņemts | ||
| The word "aizņemts" in Latvian can also mean "taken" or "occupied" and derives from the Proto-Indo-European root *em- "to take". | |||
| Lithuanian | užsiėmes | ||
| The Lithuanian word "užsiėmęs" derives from the Proto-Indo-European root "*sem-", meaning "to hold" or "to seize". | |||
| Macedonian | зафатен | ||
| The word "зафатен" is an adjective in Macedonian that means "very busy" and derives from the verb "фати" which means "to take" or "to grab". | |||
| Polish | zajęty | ||
| Zajęty, a Polish word for 'busy,' also means 'arrested' or 'occupied.' | |||
| Romanian | ocupat | ||
| Ocupat, the Romanian word for 'busy' can also mean 'occupied' in the sense of being employed or taken up, e.g. 'ocupat cu munca' ('occupied with work') or 'ocuparea funcției' ('job occupation'). | |||
| Russian | занятый | ||
| The word "занятый" can also mean "occupied" or "engaged" in Russian. | |||
| Serbian | заузет | ||
| In the 15th century, the word "заузет" was used to describe someone who was "tied up" or "occupied". | |||
| Slovak | zaneprázdnený | ||
| The word "zaneprázdnený" is derived from the Old Slavic word "zanimati", meaning "to occupy". | |||
| Slovenian | zaseden | ||
| Etymology: possibly from Proto-Slavic *sęd- (“to sit”) + *-en- (“action, result”) | |||
| Ukrainian | зайняте | ||
| The word "зайняте" in Ukrainian can also mean "captured" or "occupied". | |||
Busy in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | ব্যস্ত | ||
| ব্যস্ত (byasta) literally translates to 'occupied' and means engaged in an activity, typically one that requires attention. | |||
| Gujarati | વ્યસ્ત | ||
| "વ્યસ્ત" or "vyast" in Gujarati can also mean "involved" or "engaged in" an activity or task. | |||
| Hindi | व्यस्त | ||
| The word 'व्यस्त' is derived from the Sanskrit word 'विस्तार', meaning expansion or extension, suggesting a state of being engaged in multiple activities. | |||
| Kannada | ನಿರತ | ||
| The word also means involved, engaged, or intent in Kannada. | |||
| Malayalam | തിരക്ക് | ||
| "തിരക്ക്" (busy) derives from the word "തിര" (shore), and thus also means "the edge of the sea" or "the crowd at the shore". | |||
| Marathi | व्यस्त | ||
| व्यस्त in Marathi has connotations of involvement in a ritual or ceremony, as well as being occupied with a task. | |||
| Nepali | व्यस्त | ||
| The word "व्यस्त" (byasta) can also refer to being preoccupied, engaged, or involved in something. | |||
| Punjabi | ਵਿਅਸਤ | ||
| The word "ਵਿਅਸਤ" (vyasta) is derived from the Sanskrit word "व्यास" (vyāsa), which means "to spread out or extend". | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | කාර්යබහුලයි | ||
| Tamil | பரபரப்பு | ||
| "பரபரப்பு" is also used to describe a state of excitement or commotion. | |||
| Telugu | బిజీగా | ||
| The word "బిజీగా" can also mean "involved" or "preoccupied". | |||
| Urdu | مصروف | ||
| Did you know that "مصروف" can also refer to expenses in Urdu? | |||
Busy in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 忙 | ||
| "忙" not only means being physically busy, it can also mean looking after someone. | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 忙 | ||
| "忙" is also used to represent "fly" and a surname commonly pronounced "Mang". | |||
| Japanese | 忙しい | ||
| The word "忙しい" (busy) is derived from the Japanese word "いそぐ" (to hurry), and also refers to a state of being engaged or occupied. | |||
| Korean | 바쁜 | ||
| The word "바쁜" (busy) was originally a slang term used by gisaeng (female entertainers) in the Joseon Dynasty. | |||
| Mongolian | завгүй | ||
| The Mongolian word "завгүй" (busy) is commonly confused with the Chinese word "忙" (mángx), due to their similar pronunciation and meaning, but they have different etymologies and characters. | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | အလုပ်ရှုပ်သည် | ||
Busy in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | sibuk | ||
| The Indonesian word "sibuk" has cognates across the Malay archipelago, most likely derived from Proto-Austronesian *sibuk, signifying "heavy" or "weighty". | |||
| Javanese | sibuk | ||
| The word "sibuk" in Javanese can also mean "pretentious" or "pompous." | |||
| Khmer | រវល់ | ||
| "រវល់" also means "noisy" and is derived from the Sanskrit word "ravana" meaning "demon" or "noise". | |||
| Lao | ຄາວຽກ | ||
| The word "ຄາວຽກ" is derived from the Pali word "kavija", meaning "work" or "occupation". It is also related to the Sanskrit word "karma", meaning "action" or "deed". | |||
| Malay | sibuk | ||
| The word "sibuk" in Malay, also means "to have a lot on one's mind" or "to be mentally occupied". | |||
| Thai | ไม่ว่าง | ||
| "ไม่ว่าง" originally referred to the engagement of one's schedule, but has since expanded to include the idea of being emotionally unavailable. | |||
| Vietnamese | bận | ||
| The word "bận" in Vietnamese is thought to have Chinese origins and can also mean "to wear" or "to be occupied with responsibilities." | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | abala | ||
Busy in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | məşğul | ||
| Kazakh | бос емес | ||
| The word “бос емес,” meaning “busy” in Kazakh, also refers to someone who is very important or high-ranking. | |||
| Kyrgyz | алек | ||
| Kyrgyz "алек" derives from Proto-Turkic *aγlïg ("fast, agile"). | |||
| Tajik | банд | ||
| The Tajik word "банд" originates from the Persian word "باند" (band), meaning "bond" or "connection." | |||
| Turkmen | meşgul | ||
| Uzbek | band | ||
| "Band" means "busy" in Uzbek, but it can also refer to a group of musicians or a strip of fabric. | |||
| Uyghur | ئالدىراش | ||
Busy in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | hana | ||
| "Hana" also means "work" in Hawaiian. | |||
| Maori | pukumahi | ||
| The word 'pukumahi' has various meanings, including 'dizzy', 'confused', 'stupefied' and 'stupid'. | |||
| Samoan | pisi | ||
| Pisi also means 'tired' or 'lazy' depending on context. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | abala | ||
| The Tagalog word "abala" can also mean "occupied" or "engaged". | |||
Busy in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | jan pachani | ||
| Guarani | hembiapoheta | ||
Busy in International Languages
| Esperanto | okupita | ||
| "Okupita" is derived from "okupi", meaning "to occupy", hence "busy". | |||
| Latin | occupatus | ||
| The Latin word "occupatus" also means "possessed" or "seized," with the latter sense being the origin of the English word "occupied." | |||
Busy in Others Languages
| Greek | απασχολημένος | ||
| "απασχολημένος" derives from the Ancient Greek word απασχολία, which means "employment" or "engagement". | |||
| Hmong | tibneeg hu tauj coob | ||
| The word "tibneeg hu tauj coob" (busy) in Hmong is composed of the words "tibneeg" (work) and "hu tauj coob" (a lot of), and can also refer to someone who is very talkative or noisy. | |||
| Kurdish | bikar | ||
| "Bikar" also derives from an Old Kurdish term for a "beehive" and can mean "busy like bees" in a metaphoric usage. | |||
| Turkish | meşgul | ||
| The word "meşgul" in Turkish is derived from the Arabic word "mashghul", meaning "engaged in work or study". | |||
| Xhosa | uxakekile | ||
| Uxakekile can also mean 'occupied', 'involved in', or 'engaged with'. | |||
| Yiddish | ביזי | ||
| The Yiddish word "ביזי" also means "angry" or "bad-tempered." | |||
| Zulu | matasa | ||
| The word 'matasa' in Zulu can also refer to the bustling activity of a crowd or the chaotic movement of objects. | |||
| Assamese | ব্যস্ত | ||
| Aymara | jan pachani | ||
| Bhojpuri | व्यस्त | ||
| Dhivehi | ބުރަ | ||
| Dogri | मसरूफ | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | abala | ||
| Guarani | hembiapoheta | ||
| Ilocano | adu ar-aramidenna | ||
| Krio | bizi | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | سەرقاڵ | ||
| Maithili | व्यस्त | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯊꯕꯛ ꯆꯤꯟꯕ | ||
| Mizo | buai | ||
| Oromo | muddamuu | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ବ୍ୟସ୍ତ | ||
| Quechua | ruwanayuq | ||
| Sanskrit | व्यस्तः | ||
| Tatar | мәшгуль | ||
| Tigrinya | ዝተጨናነቀ | ||
| Tsonga | gingirika | ||
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