[1] : The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

business \busi"ness\ bi^z"ne^s, n.; pl. businesses
   bi^z"ne^se^z. from busy.
   1. that which busies one, or that which engages the time,
      attention, or labor of any one, as his principal concern
      or interest, whether for a longer or shorter time;
      constant employment; regular occupation; as, the business
      of life; business before pleasure.
      1913 webster

            wist ye not that i must be about my father's
            business?                             --luke ii. 49.
      1913 webster

   2. any particular occupation or employment engaged in for
      livelihood or gain, as agriculture, trade, art, or a
      profession. "the business of instruction." --prescott.
      1913 webster

   3. financial dealings; buying and selling; traffic in
      general; mercantile transactions.
      1913 webster

            it seldom happens that men of a studious turn
            acquire any degree of reputation for their knowledge
            of business.                          --bp. popteus.
      1913 webster

   4. that which one has to do or should do; special service,
      duty, or mission.
      1913 webster

            the daughter of the king of france,
            on serious business, craving quick despatch,
            importunes personal conference.       --shak.
      1913 webster

            what business has the tortoise among the clouds?
                                                  --l'estrange.
      1913 webster

   5. affair; concern; matter; -- used in an indefinite sense,
      and modified by the connected words.
      1913 webster

            it was a gentle business, and becoming
            the action of good women.             --shak.
      1913 webster

            bestow
            your needful counsel to our business. --shak.
      1913 webster

   6. drama the position, distribution, and order of persons
      and properties on the stage of a theater, as determined by
      the stage manager in rehearsal.
      1913 webster

   7. care; anxiety; diligence. obs. --chaucer.
      1913 webster

   to do one's business, to ruin one. colloq. --wycherley.

   to make a thing one's business, to occupy one's self with
      a thing as a special charge or duty. colloq.

   to mean business, to be earnest. colloq.
      1913 webster

   syn: affairs; concern; transaction; matter; engagement;
        employment; calling; occupation; trade; profession;
        vocation; office; duty.
        1913 webster
see also:
businesses busy to do one's business to make a thing one's business to mean business 

[2] : WordNet (r) 2.0

business
     n 1: a commercial or industrial enterprise and the people who
          constitute it; "he bought his brother's business"; "a
          small mom-and-pop business"; "a racially integrated
          business concern" syn: concern, business concern, business
          organization, business organisation
     2: the activity of providing goods and services involving
        financial and commercial and industrial aspects;
        "computers are now widely used in business" syn: commercial
        enterprise, business enterprise
     3: business concerns collectively; "government and business
        could not agree" syn: business sector
     4: the volume of business activity; "business is good today";
        "show me where the business was today"
     5: a rightful concern or responsibility; "it's none of your
        business"; "mind your own business"
     6: the principal activity in your life that you do to earn
        money; "he's not in my line of business" syn: occupation,
         job, line of work, line
     7: an immediate objective; "gossip was the main business of the
        evening"
     8: incidental activity performed by an actor for dramatic
        effect; "his business with the cane was hilarious" syn: stage
        business, byplay
     9: customers collectively; "they have an upper class clientele"
        syn: clientele, patronage
see also:
concern business concern business organization business organisation commercial enterprise business enterprise 
business sector occupation job line of work line 
stage business byplay clientele patronage 

[3] : Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

214 moby thesaurus words for "business":
   aktiengesellschaft, acting, action, activeness, activism, activity,
   affair, aktiebolag, allegiance, area, art, assigned task, attempt,
   balance of trade, big business, body corporate, bounden duty,
   buffoonery, burden, business dealings, business establishment,
   call of duty, calling, career, career building, careerism, cartel,
   chamber of commerce, characterization, charge, combine, commerce,
   commercial, commercial affairs, commercial enterprise,
   commercial relations, commitment, compagnie, company, concern,
   concernment, conglomerate, conglomerate corporation,
   consolidating company, consortium, contract, copartnership,
   corporate body, corporation, craft, custom, deal, dealing,
   dealings, dedication, deference, devoir, devotion, dingus,
   diversified corporation, dofunny, doing, doings,
   duties and responsibilities, duty, effort, employment, engagement,
   enterprise, establishment, ethics, fair trade, fealty, firm,
   free trade, function, gadget, gag, game, gizmo, goings-on, ham,
   hammy acting, handicraft, hoke, hokum, holding company, homage,
   hootenanny, house, imperative, impersonation, industrial, industry,
   intercourse, interest, issue, jigger, job, joint-stock association,
   joint-stock company, lifework, line, line of business,
   line of duty, line of work, lookout, loyalty, market, marketing,
   matter, mercantile, mercantile business, merchant, merchantry,
   metier, militancy, mimesis, mimicking, mimicry, miming, mission,
   motion, movement, multilateral trade, mummery, must, mystery,
   number, obligation, occasions, occupation, office, onus,
   operating company, operation, organization, ought, outfit,
   overacting, palaver, pantomiming, partnership, patter, performance,
   performing, personation, place, plan, playacting, playing,
   plunderbund, point, political activism, pool, portrayal, practice,
   problem, proceeding, proceedings, profession, program, project,
   projection, proposition, proprietorship, province, public utility,
   pursuit, question, racket, reciprocal trade, representation,
   respect, responsibility, restraint of trade, retail, role,
   self-imposed duty, slapstick, small business, specialization,
   specialty, stage business, stage directions, stage presence, stir,
   stock company, stunt, subject, syndicate, taking a role, task,
   the business world, the marketplace, thing, thingumajig, topic,
   trade, trade association, trading, traffic, transaction, truck,
   trust, undertaking, unilateral trade, utility, venture, vocation,
   walk, walk of life, wholesale, work

Business >> B Words
Business, definition of term: Business
business_pag1.html

Business Organi >> B Words
Business Organi, definition of term: Business Organi
business+organi_pag1.html

Business Sector >> B Words
Business Sector, definition of term: Business Sector
business+sector_pag1.html

Business Letter >> B Words
Business Letter, definition of term: Business Letter
business+letter_pag1.html

Business Enterp >> B Words
Business Enterp, definition of term: Business Enterp
business+enterp_pag1.html

Business Card >> B Words
Business Card, definition of term: Business Card
business+card_pag1.html

Business Cycle >> B Words
Business Cycle, definition of term: Business Cycle
business+cycle_pag1.html

Show Business >> S Words
Show Business, definition of term: Show Business
show+business_pag1.html

Common Business >> C Words
Common Business, definition of term: Common Business
common+business_pag1.html