Idioms

bustle

Also found in: Dictionary.
(redirected from bustling)

bustle about

1. To move quickly from place to place while trying to complete a task. Annabelle has been bustling about, cleaning the whole house and setting up all the guest rooms before her relatives come to visit. Can you stop bustling about for five minutes and tell me what's going on? The CEO is coming down for a meeting at 2:00, that's why we're bustling about and tidying things up!
2. To quickly move around some space or area while trying to complete a task. In this usage, the location is stated after "about." I spent the whole afternoon bustling about town, trying to get through my list of errands while the kids were at school. Why did I say I'd host the dinner party? I've been bustling about the kitchen all day, and there's still more to do! Hmm, I saw Al bustle about the file room earlier. Maybe he picked up the folder you're looking for.
See also: bustle

bustle around

1. To move quickly from place to place while trying to complete a task. Annabelle has been bustling around, cleaning the whole house and setting up all the guest rooms before her relatives come to visit. Can you stop bustling around for five minutes and tell me what's going on? The CEO is coming down for a meeting at 2:00, that's why we're bustling around and tidying things up!
2. To quickly move around some space or area while trying to complete a task. In this usage, the location is stated after "around." I spent the whole afternoon bustling around town, trying to get through my list of errands while the kids were at school. Why did I say I'd host the dinner party? I've been bustling around the kitchen all day, and there's still more to do! Hmm, I saw Al bustle around the file room earlier. Maybe he picked up the folder you're looking for.
See also: around, bustle

bustle off

1. To leave a place hastily. A: "I didn't see Alice this morning." B: "Oh, she bustled off because she was running late." Professor Smith bustled off already? Darn, I had a question about the quiz. Grab the evidence—we need to bustle off before someone catches us in here!
2. To send someone somewhere. In this usage, a noun or pronoun can be used between "bustle" and "off." Before I left for the airport, I bustled my daughter off to school. Luckily, I was able to bustle the baby off to my mother when I was called for an interview at the last minute. Don't worry about it, just bustle the kids off to me and go deal with this work crisis.
See also: bustle, off

hustle (one's) bustle

To increase one's pace or sense of urgency; to hurry up; to get moving quickly. We'd better hustle our bustle if we want to get to the movie theater on time! Hustle your bustle, kids! We're already running late! There's no need to hustle your bustle—we'll just be sitting in traffic on the highway, so we're gonna be late no matter what.
See also: bustle, hustle

hustle and bustle

Busy and frenetic activity or excitement. I love living among the hustle and bustle of the city. I avoid the hustle and bustle of malls and shopping centers whenever I can. I want to go to the country on Saturday, to get away from the hustle and bustle of city life.
See also: and, bustle, hustle
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

bustle about doing something

to go about doing something busily and energetically. Greg bustled about all day, doing the chores. Lily bustled about, getting dinner ready.
See also: bustle

bustle about some place

to move about some place very busily, or as if busy. They were all bustling about the kitchen, getting the feast ready. Veronica was bustling about outside, cleaning up the yard.
See also: bustle, place

bustle around

to move about very busily. The people were bustling around, trying to get things ready for the picnic. I wish you would stop bustling around.
See also: around, bustle

bustle off

to leave in haste. Well, I have to bustle off or I'll miss my flight. I hate to bustle off so soon.
See also: bustle, off

bustle someone off

to help someone leave; to send someone out or away. The cops bustled the crook off. They bustled off the three men who were fighting.
See also: bustle, off

hustle and bustle

Fig. confusion and business. I can't stand the hustle and bustle of big cities. There is a lot of hustle and bustle in this office at the end of the fiscal year.
See also: and, bustle, hustle
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

ˌhustle and ˈbustle

busy and excited activity: I can’t concentrate on my work with all this hustle and bustle going on around me. ♢ I’ve always loved the hustle and bustle of big cities.
See also: and, bustle, hustle
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
See also:
References in periodicals archive
A thoroughly researched, scholarly scrutiny of a changing economic era as reflected in a bustling and complex metropolis.
Genoa And The Sea
Internal demand for goods and services, as indicated by overall investments in productive manufacturing facilities and a bustling construction sector, have also pushed the country forward.
Chile: the strength within
Popular by day for business lunches and bustling throughout the evening with club patrons, Deep Ellum has broad appeal.
Destination Dallas: a Texas-sized show is planned for 2006
Once a bustling cultural and spiritual centre hosting tourists and pilgrims, Bethlehem now has boarded-up shops and abandoned development projects, states the report, entitled "Costs of Conflict: The Changing Face of Bethlehem."
Bethlehem isolated
At the turn of the 20th century, Leadville, Colo., was a bustling mining town.
Leadville: the Struggle to Revive an American Town
Consider what you'll miss if you don't go: Perched atop Persian carpets high above the ancient city's bustling labyrinth of bazaars, winding alleys, and elaborately carved wooden doors, the hotel's open-air Tower Top Restaurant serves everything from battered pepper shark to mango cobbler.
East African Eden?
The agency has operated continuously at a site on Yonge near the bustling Dundas street intersection for more than 100 years.
Yonge Street Mission: 100 years
On this quiet, bucolic farm--complete with easy access to bike and hiking trails--it's hard to believe that you're a mere three miles from bustling downtown Amherst.
Traveling light: a visit to eco-friendly bed-and-breakfasts
A fishing village until the mid-12th century, Copenhagen is now a bustling metropolis heavily influenced by jazz, architecture and design, and the arts, Among the city's major industries are electronics, pharmaceuticals, and textiles
Northern exposure: Copenhagen is Kenneth Smith's home court
Those dangerous bustling days of the Victorians ...
The Diary
This can spell trouble as people trample delicate plants hi these bustling ecosystem (organisms and their surroundings), says Tony Rango, of the Sierra Club.
e eco-tourism: life
From the bustling cities of Bangkok, Saigon and Hanoi to the tranquility of Halong Bay and Angkor Wat, from the beaches of Danang and the royal temples of Hue to the rich farmlands of the Mekong Delta, discover a world of friendly people, scenic beauty and cultural heritage.
Craig tours 2003/2004: particularly planned for readers of the Anglican Journal and their friends. Showing the world to Canadians for over 34 years
That nation, Norrath, is the setting for the online game EverQuest (www.everquest.station.sony.com); it contains hobbits, monsters, much sword-and-sorcery mayhem, and a bustling business in loot and magic spells.
Norrath Paribus. (Artifact)
Ordinarily, I don't expect to see outstanding tape announcements at the bustling AIIM show in New York, but I came across one of the best designed tape libraries that I've seen in a long time at AIIM, from a brand new source.
Infinistore: Better By Design
Sendak's bustling illustrations abound with gags, however, as even a casual glance to the right should reveal.
DANCESCAPE
Copyright © 2003-2025 Farlex, Inc Disclaimer
All content on this website, including dictionary, thesaurus, literature, geography, and other reference data is for informational purposes only. This information should not be considered complete, up to date, and is not intended to be used in place of a visit, consultation, or advice of a legal, medical, or any other professional.