holiday

See also: Holiday

English

Etymology

From Middle English halyday, holyday, halidei, haliȝdei, from Old English hāliġdæġ (“holy day, Sabbath”), equivalent to holy +‎ day. Compare West Frisian hjeldei (“holiday”), Danish helligdag (“holiday”), Norwegian helligdag (“holiday”), Swedish helgdag (“holiday, feast”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈhɒlɪdeɪ/, /-di/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈhɑləˌdeɪ/

• Audio (General American):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: hol‧i‧day

Noun

holiday (plural holidays)

1. A day on which a festival, religious event, or national celebration is traditionally observed.

   Synonyms: feast day, holy day

   Today is a Wiccan holiday!

   • 2005, Bill Clinton, My Life‎^[1], volume II, New York: Vintage Books, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 5:

     Monday, January 18, was the holiday celebrating Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday. In the morning I held a reception for the diplomatic representatives of other nations in the inner quadrangle at Georgetown, addressing them from the steps of Old North Building.

2. A day declared free from work by the state or government.

   Synonyms: (UK) bank holiday, national holiday

3. (chiefly UK, Australia) A period of one or more days taken off work for leisure and often travel; often plural.

   Synonyms: leave, time off, (US) vacation; see also Thesaurus:vacation

   • 1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter IV, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC, page 46:

     No matter how early I came down, I would find him on the veranda, smoking cigarettes, or […] . And at last I began to realize in my harassed soul that all elusion was futile, and to take such holidays as I could get, when he was off with a girl, in a spirit of thankfulness.

   • 1949 August 11, “A Dreamer’s Holiday”, performed by Perry Como, The Fontaine Sisters, and The Mitchell Ayres Orchestra:

     Climb aboard a butterfly and take off in the breeze. Let your worries flutter by and do the things you please. In the land where dollar bills are falling off the trees. On a dreamer’s holiday. […] Make it a long vacation. Time, there is plenty of. You need no reservation. Just bring along the one you love.

4. (chiefly UK, Australia) A period during which pupils do not attend their school; often plural; rarely used for students at university (usually: vacation).

   Synonym: (US) vacation

   I want to take a French course this summer holiday.

5. (finance) A period during which, by agreement, the usual payments are not made.

   a mortgage payment holiday

6. A gap in coverage, e.g. of paint on a surface, or sonar imagery.

   Synonym: lacuna

Derived terms

• alcoholiday
• all holiday
• antiholiday
• Bank Holiday
• bank holiday
• blind man's holiday
• blindman's holiday
• busman's holiday
• drug holiday
• enjoy your holiday
• go on holiday
• half-holiday
• Hallmark holiday
• hallmark holiday
• happy holidays
• high days and holidays
• High Holidays
• Holiday
• holiday camp
• holidayer
• holidayfic
• holiday fic
• holiday heart
• holiday heart syndrome
• holiday home
• holidayism
• holidaymaker
• holiday-maker
• holidaymaking
• holiday ownership
• holiday package
• holiday park
• holiday pay
• holiday season
• holiday speeches
• holiday time
• holiday tree
• holiday village
• legal holiday
• national holiday
• package holiday
• public holiday
• Roman holiday
• school holiday
• stat holiday
• statutory holiday
• summer holiday
• unholiday
• winter holiday

 

Related terms

• hallow
• Halloween
• whole

 

Translations

day on which a festival, religious event, or national celebration is traditionally observed

• Albanian: festë (sq) f
• Arabic: عِيد (ar) m (ʕīd)
• Armenian: տոն (hy) (ton)
• Aromanian: sãrbãtoari f
• Avar: байрам (bajram)
• Azerbaijani: bayram (az)
• Bashkir: байрам (bayram), ғәйет (ğəyet)
• Belarusian: свя́та n (svjáta), пра́знік m (práznik)
• Bengali: ছুটির দিন (chuṭir din)
• Bulgarian: пра́зник (bg) m (práznik)
• Burmese: အလုပ်ပိတ်ရက် (my) (a.luppitrak)
• Catalan: festa (ca) f
• Chichewa: holide
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 節日 / 节日 (zit³ jat⁶), 節慶 / 节庆 (zit³ hing³)

  Mandarin: 節日 / 节日 (zh) (jiérì), 節慶 / 节庆 (zh) (jiéqìng)

• Chukchi: праздник (prazdnik), эӈэӈыткун (ėṇėṇytkun), крычмын (kryčmyn)
• Chuvash: уяв (ujav)
• Crimean Tatar: bayram
• Czech: svátek (cs) m
• Danish: helligdag (da) c
• Dutch: feestdag (nl) m
• Esperanto: festotago
• Estonian: püha
• Finnish: juhlapäivä (fi), pyhäpäivä (fi)
• French: fête (fr) f
• Galician: festa (gl) f, día santo m, día festivo (gl) m
• Georgian: დღესასწაული (dɣesasc̣auli)
• German: Feiertag (de) m
• Greek: γιορτή (el) f (giortí)

  Ancient: ἑορτή f (heortḗ)

• Gujarati: તહેવાર m (tahevār), ઉત્સવ m (utsav)
• Hebrew: חג \ חַג (he) m (khag), יום טוב (he) m (yóm ṭóv)
• Hindi: छुट्टी (hi) f (chuṭṭī), ईद (hi) f (īd) (Muslim)
• Hungarian: ünnepnap (hu)
• Icelandic: helgidagur (is) m
• Indonesian: liburan (id)
• Ingrian: pyhäpäivä
• Irish: lá saoire m
• Italian: giorno festivo m
• Japanese: 祭日 (ja) (さいじつ, saijitsu), 祭り (ja) (まつり, matsuri)
• Kazakh: мейрам (meiram), айт (ait)
• Khmer: ថ្ងៃឈប់សម្រាក (thngay chup sɑmraak), បុណ្យ (km) (bon), ថ្ងៃឈប់បុណ្យ (thngay chup bon)
• Korean: 축제일(祝祭日) (ko) (chukjeil), 축일(祝日) (ko) (chugil)
• Kurdish:

  Central Kurdish: جەژن (ckb) (cejn), عه‌ید ('eyd)

  Northern Kurdish: eyd (ku)

• Kyrgyz: майрам (ky) (mayram), айт (ky) (ayt)
• Lao: ມື້ພັກ (lo) (mư̄ phak)
• Latin: diēs fēstus m, fēria f, fēstum n
• Macedonian: празник (mk) m (praznik)
• Malay: hari perayaan
• Maltese: jum il-festa
• Manx: feaill f, feailley f
• Maori: hararei
• Mòcheno: fest n
• Mongolian:

  Cyrillic: баяр (mn) (bajar)

• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: helligdag m, helgedag m, høytidsdag m, høgtidsdag m

  Nynorsk: heilagdag m, helgedag m, høgtidsdag m

• Old Church Slavonic:

  Cyrillic: праздьникъ m (prazdĭnikŭ)

• Pannonian Rusyn: швето n (šveto), одпочивок m (odpočivok)
• Pashto: عيد (ps) m (id)
• Persian:

  Dari: عِید (īd)

  Iranian Persian: عِید (eyd), عید (fa) (id)

• Plautdietsch: Heljedach m
• Polish: święto (pl) n
• Portuguese: feriado (pt) m
• Romanian: sărbătoare (ro) f
• Russian: пра́здник (ru) m (prázdnik)
• Scottish Gaelic: latha-fèille m
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: пра̑знӣк m, свѐтковина f

  Roman: prȃznīk (sh) m, svètkovina (sh) f

• Shor: пайрам (payram)
• Slovak: sviatok m
• Slovene: praznik (sl) m
• Spanish: festividad (es) f, fiesta (es) f
• Swahili: likizo (sw)
• Swedish: högtid (sv) c
• Tajik: ид (tg) (id)
• Tatar: бәйрәм (tt) (bäyräm)
• Telugu: సెలవు (te) (selavu)
• Thai: วันหยุด (th) (wan-yùt)
• Turkish: bayram (tr)
• Turkmen: baýramçylyk (tk), baýram (tk)
• Ukrainian: свя́то n (svjáto), пра́зник (uk) m (práznyk)
• Urdu: عِید f ('īd), چُھٹّی f (chuṭṭī)
• Uyghur: بايرام (bayram)
• Uzbek: bayram (uz)
• Vietnamese: ngày lễ (vi)
• Welsh: gŵyl (cy)

day declared free from work by the government

• Arabic: عُطْل m (ʕuṭl), عُطْلَة f (ʕuṭla)

  Gulf Arabic: عطلة (ʕɛṭlə), يوم راحة (yom raḥə)

• Armenian: տոն (hy) (ton)
• Bashkir: байрам көнө (bayram könö), ял көнө (yal könö)
• Basque: jaiegun
• Belarusian: свя́та n (svjáta), выхадны́ дзень m (vyxadný dzjenʹ), выхадны́ m (vyxadný)
• Bulgarian: пра́зник (bg) m (práznik)
• Catalan: dia de festa m, dia feriat m
• Chichewa: holide
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 國定假日 / 国定假日

• Czech: svátek (cs) m
• Danish: helligdag (da) c, fridag (da) c
• Dutch: feestdag (nl) m
• Esperanto: festotago
• Finnish: yleinen vapaapäivä
• French: jour férié (fr) m, jour de congé (fr) m
• Galician: día festivo (gl) m
• German: gesetzlicher Feiertag m, Ruhetag (de) m
• Greek: αργία (el) f (argía)
• Hindi: छुट्टी (hi) f (chuṭṭī), तातील (hi) f (tātīl), छुट्टी का दिन m (chuṭṭī kā din)
• Hungarian: szünnap (hu), szabadnap (hu)
• Indonesian: liburan (id)
• Irish: lá saoire m
• Italian: giorno festivo m
• Japanese: 休日 (ja) (きゅうじつ, kyūjitsu), 休暇 (ja) (きゅうか, kyūka)
• Kazakh: мереке (mereke)
• Korean: 휴일(休日) (ko) (hyuil)
• Lao: ມື້ພັກງານ (mư̄ phak ngān)
• Latin: fēriae f pl, fēstum n
• Macedonian: празник (mk) m (praznik), неработен ден m (neraboten den)
• Malay: cuti (ms)
• Malayalam: അവധി (ml) (avadhi)
• Maltese: btala, franka
• Maori: hararei
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: helligdag m

  Nynorsk: heilagdag m

• Persian:

  Iranian Persian: تَعْطیل (ta'til), هالیدِی (hâlidey) (informal)

• Polish: święto (pl) n
• Portuguese: feriado (pt) m
• Russian: пра́здник (ru) m (prázdnik), выходно́й день m (vyxodnój denʹ), выходно́й (ru) m (vyxodnój)
• Scottish Gaelic: latha-fèille m
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: пра̑знӣк m

  Roman: prȃznīk (sh) m

• Slovak: sviatok m
• Slovene: praznik (sl) m
• Spanish: día festivo m (Spain, Mexico, Colombia, Guatemala, Nicaragua), feriado (es) m (Argentina, Ecuador, El Salvador, Honduras, Peru, Uruguay), día feriado m (Bolivia, Chile, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Panama, Paraguay, Puerto Rico, Venezuela); día de fiesta m (Cuba)
• Swahili: likizo (sw)
• Swedish: helgdag (sv) c
• Thai: วันหยุด (th) (wan-yùt)
• Tibetan: གུང་གསེང (gung gseng)
• Turkish: tatil (tr)
• Ukrainian: свя́то n (svjáto), вихідни́й день m (vyxidnýj denʹ), вихідни́й m (vyxidnýj)
• Urdu: تَعْطِیل f (ta'tīl), چُھٹّی f (chuṭṭī)
• Vietnamese: nghỉ lễ

period of one or more days taken off work for leisure and often travel

• Albanian: festë (sq) f, pushim (sq) m
• Arabic: إِجَازَة f (ʔijāza), عُطْلَة f (ʕuṭla)
• Armenian: արձակուրդ (hy) (arjakurd)
• Azerbaijani: tətil (az)
• Bashkir: ял (yal)
• Belarusian: во́дпуск m (vódpusk)
• Bulgarian: о́тпуска (bg) f (ótpuska), о́тпуск (bg) m (ótpusk), вака́нция (bg) f (vakáncija)
• Catalan: vacances (ca) f pl
• Chichewa: holide
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 假日 (zh) (jiàrì), 休假日 (xiūjiàrì), 假期 (zh) (jiàqī)

• Czech: dovolená (cs) f
• Danish: ferie (da) c
• Dutch: vakantie (nl) f
• Esperanto: libertempo
• Estonian: puhkust
• Finnish: loma (fi), lomapäivä (fi), vapaapäivä (fi)
• French: congé (fr) m, vacances (fr) f pl
• Galician: vacacións f pl
• German: Urlaub (de) m, Ferien (de) pl
• Greek: διακοπές (el) f or pl (diakopés)
• Hebrew: חופשה \ חֻפְשָׁה (he) f (khufshá)
• Hindi: छुट्टी (hi) f (chuṭṭī), तातील (hi) f (tātīl), छुट्टी का दिन m (chuṭṭī kā din)
• Hungarian: szabadság (hu)
• Irish: saoire f
• Italian: vacanza (it) f, ferie (it) f pl
• Japanese: 休暇 (ja) (きゅうか, kyūka), 休日 (ja) (きゅうじつ, kyūjitsu)
• Kazakh: демалыс (demalys)
• Khmer: ថ្ងៃលំហែ (thngay lumhae), ល្ហែ (km) (lhae), រហែ (km) (rɔhae)
• Korean: 휴가(休暇) (ko) (hyuga)
• Kyrgyz: дем алыш (ky) (dem alış), отпуск (ky) (otpusk)
• Latin: cessātiō f, fēriae f pl
• Latvian: atvaļinājums m
• Lithuanian: atóstogos (lt) f pl
• Macedonian: одмор (mk) m (odmor)
• Malay: cuti (ms)
• Maltese: vaganza
• Maori: hararei
• Mongolian:

  Cyrillic: амралт (mn) (amralt)

• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: ferie (no) m

  Nynorsk: ferie m

• Pashto: تعطيل (ps) m (ta'tíl)
• Persian:

  Iranian Persian: تَعْطیل (ta'til)

• Polish: urlop (pl) m
• Portuguese: férias (pt) f pl
• Romanian: vacanţă (ro) f
• Russian: о́тпуск (ru) m (ótpusk), отгу́л (ru) m (otgúl) (unpaid)
• Scottish Gaelic: saor-làithean m pl, làithean-saora m pl, saor-latha m
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: о̀дмор m

  Roman: òdmor (sh) m

• Slovak: dovolenka f
• Slovene: dopust m
• Spanish: vacación (es) f, vacaciones (es) f pl
• Swahili: likizo (sw)
• Swedish: semester (sv) c
• Tajik: таътил (tg) (taʾtil), отпуска (otpuska)
• Turkish: tatil (tr)
• Turkmen: dynç alyş
• Ukrainian: відпу́стка f (vidpústka)
• Urdu: تَعْطِیل f (ta'tīl), چُھٹّی f (chuṭṭī)
• Uyghur: تەتىل (tetil)
• Uzbek: otpuska (uz), taʼtil (uz)
• Vietnamese: ngày nghỉ

period during which pupils do not attend school

• Azerbaijani: tətil (az)
• Belarusian: кані́кулы f pl (kaníkuly), вака́цыя f (vakácyja)
• Bulgarian: вака́нция (bg) f (vakáncija)
• Catalan: vacances (ca) f pl
• Chichewa: holide
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 假期 (zh) (jiàqī, jiàqí)

• Czech: prázdniny (cs) f pl
• Danish: ferie (da) c
• Dutch: vakantie (nl)
• Esperanto: (lernejaj) ferioj (eo)
• Estonian: vaheaeg, koolivaheaeg
• Finnish: loma (fi)
• French: vacances (fr) f pl
• Galician: vacacións f pl
• German: Ferien (de) pl, Urlaub (de) m
• Greek: διακοπές (el) f or pl (diakopés)
• Hungarian: szünet (hu), vakáció (hu) (summer only)
• Irish: laethanta saoire m pl
• Italian: vacanza (it) f
• Kazakh: демалыс (demalys)
• Korean: 방학(放學) (ko) (banghak)
• Latin: fēriae f pl, cessātiō f
• Latvian: brīvdienas f pl
• Macedonian: распуст m (raspust)
• Malagasy: fialantsasatra, fialantsasatra
• Malayalam: അവധിക്കാലം (avadhikkālaṁ)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: ferie (no) m

  Nynorsk: ferie m

• Persian:

  Iranian Persian: تَعْطیل (ta'til), تَعْطیلات (ta'tilât)

• Polish: wakacje (pl) pl, ferie (pl) f pl (winter holidays)
• Portuguese: férias (pt)
• Russian: кани́кулы (ru) f pl (kaníkuly)
• Scottish Gaelic: saor-làithean m pl, làithean-saora m pl
• Swahili: likizo (sw)
• Swedish: lov (sv) n
• Tajik: таътил (tg) (taʾtil)
• Turkish: tatil (tr)
• Turkmen: kanikul
• Ukrainian: кані́кули f pl (kaníkuly)
• Uzbek: kanikul (uz), tatil (uz)

finance: period during which, by agreement, the usual payments are not made

• Hungarian: haladék (hu)

unintentional gap in coverage, e.g. of paint on a surface, or sonar imagery — see also lacuna

• Danish: helligdag (da) c
• Finnish: aukko (fi)
• Hungarian: kihagyott/kimaradt rész/felület, hézag (hu), kihagyás (hu), hiány (hu)
• Italian: vacanza (it) f
• Russian: опло́шность (ru) f (oplóšnostʹ), про́пуск (ru) m (própusk), плешь (ru) f (plešʹ)
• Swahili: likizo (sw)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Macedonian: одмор (mk) m (odmor), отсуство n (otsustvo)
• Maltese: vaganza, btala
• Persian: تعطیل (fa) (ta'til)
• Sanskrit: ^{(please verify)} विरामदिन (virāmadina)
• Vietnamese: nghỉ hè (vi)

Verb

holiday (third-person singular simple present holidays, present participle holidaying, simple past and past participle holidayed) (chiefly British)

1. (intransitive) To take a period of time away from work or study.
2. (British, intransitive) To spend a period of time in recreational travel.

Translations

to take a period of time away from work or study

• Finnish: lomailla (fi)
• Hungarian: szabadságon van, szabadnapos (hu) (adjective, used in predicates with 'van')
• Macedonian: отсуствува (otsustvuva), зема одмор (zema odmor)
• Maori: hararei
• Portuguese: tirar férias
• Russian: брать о́тпуск (bratʹ ótpusk), проводи́ть о́тпуск (provodítʹ ótpusk), проводи́ть кани́кулы (provodítʹ kaníkuly), отдыха́ть (ru) (otdyxátʹ)
• Spanish: vacacionar (es)
• Vietnamese: nghỉ mát (vi)

to spend a period of time in recreational travel

• Finnish: matkustella (fi)
• German: reisen (de), eine Ferienreise (de) machen, urlauben (de) (colloquial)
• Hungarian: kirándul (hu)
• Maori: hararei
• Russian: путеше́ствовать (ru) (putešéstvovatʹ)
• Spanish: vacacionar (es)

Anagrams

• hyaloid, hyoidal

Middle English

Noun

holiday

1. Alternative form of halyday