look busy

Frequency: 7.015.2 per million words

To appear to be occupied, whether one truly is or not.

Categories:

Examples (10)

  • Whenever the boss walks by, everyone tries to look busy.
  • He wasn't doing any real work; he was just arranging papers to look busy.
  • You should at least look busy when the clients are touring the office.
  • Just looking busy isn't a substitute for actual productivity.
  • She managed to look incredibly busy, though she was just browsing online.
  • He always looks busy, but his output doesn't seem to reflect it.
  • Pick up a clipboard and look busy! The inspection is about to start.
  • How do I look busy without any actual tasks to do?
  • The employees all started to look busy when they heard the CEO's footsteps.
  • If you don't look busy, the manager will assign you more tasks.