Definition of "busywork" [busywork]

• Activity, such as schoolwork or office work, meant to take up time but not necessarily yield productive results. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "In economics, model-builders 'busywork is to refine their ideas to ask questions to which the available data cannot give the answer."
• "I was given "busywork" and left alone all day long."
• "The paperwork can't possibly be that burdensome if it's being called "busywork" and it lets experienced, but potentially outdated teachers slide by without testing their knowledge or technological savvy."