industrious

adjective

in·​dus·​tri·​ous in-ˈdə-strē-əs 

1

: constantly, regularly, or habitually active or occupied : diligent

an industrious worker

2

obsolete : skillful, ingenious

industriously adverb

industriousness noun

Synonyms

• active
• assiduous
• bustling
• busy
• diligent
• employed
• engaged
• hopping
• laborious
• occupied
• sedulous
• tied-up
• working

Choose the Right Synonym for industrious

busy, industrious, diligent, assiduous, sedulous mean actively engaged or occupied.

busy chiefly stresses activity as opposed to idleness or leisure.

too busy to spend time with the children

industrious implies characteristic or habitual devotion to work.

industrious employees

diligent suggests earnest application to some specific object or pursuit.

very diligent in her pursuit of a degree

assiduous stresses careful and unremitting application.

assiduous practice

sedulous implies painstaking and persevering application.

a sedulous investigation of the murder

Examples of industrious in a Sentence

He is an industrious worker.

an industrious worker who never seems to sleep

Recent Examples on the Web

His goal and assist against Villa were warranted by an industrious, threatening individual performance in which his darting runs behind perfectly exploited the space and played on Palace’s swift movement of the ball. —Matt Woosnam, The Athletic, 24 Nov. 2024

Abbas recently turned 80 and is known to be an industrious smoker. —Ghaith Al-Omari, Foreign Affairs, 20 May 2015

Edward’s parenting was particularly industrious, requiring his children to paint their own rooms, make their own clothes and earn extra cash by trapping and skinning muskrats to sell their pelts. —Emily Blackwood, People.com, 30 Oct. 2024

Neither veteran defenseman Cam Fowler nor power forward Mason McTavish played Sunday, and both were missing from Tuesday’s practice, as was industrious winger Robby Fabbri. —Andrew Knoll, Orange County Register, 12 Nov. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Kids Definition

industrious

adjective

in·​dus·​tri·​ous in-ˈdəs-trē-əs 

: constantly or regularly active or occupied

an industrious farmer

industriously adverb

industriousness noun