Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • adjective Energetic in application to work or study. synonym: diligent.
  • adjective Obsolete Skillful; clever.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Given to industry; acting or working with diligence; sedulous: as, a person industrious in business.
  • Marked by industry; done with or characterized by diligence; busily pursued, performed, or employed: as, an industrious life; industrious researches.
  • Expert; clever; shrewd.
  • Synonyms Industrious, Industrial; busy, laborious, active, hard-working, sedulous. Industrious, having the activity or the moral quality of industry; industrial, connected with the application of industry to manufactures: as, the industrious ant; industrial statistics.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • adjective Given to industry; characterized by diligence; constantly, regularly, or habitually occupied; busy; assiduous; not slothful or idle; -- commonly implying devotion to lawful and useful labor.
  • adjective Steadily and perseveringly active in a particular pursuit or aim

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective Hard-working and persistent; worksome.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • adjective working hard to promote an enterprise
  • adjective characterized by hard work and perseverance

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Latin industriosus ("diligent, active, industrious"), from industria ("diligence, industry"); see industry.

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