Australia Day

American

noun

a legal holiday in Australia, the first Monday after January 25, commemorating the landing of the British in 1788.

Australia Day British

noun

a public holiday in Australia, commemorating the landing of the British in 1788: observed on the first Monday after Jan 26

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

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Crowds took to the streets in Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Perth and other cities on Australia Day, many with banners proclaiming: "Always was, always will be Aboriginal land".

From Barron's • Jan. 26, 2026

In Adelaide, an Australia Day parade and light show have been cancelled due to the extreme heat forecast.

From BBC • Jan. 25, 2026

Australia Day is a national holiday that is held each year on 26 January - the anniversary of Britain's First Fleet landing at Sydney Cove in 1788.

From BBC • Jan. 23, 2025

Have your views of Australia Day — and how you mark the day — changed over time?

From New York Times • Jan. 25, 2024

An incomplete Glossary of Australian terms and concepts which may prove helpful to understanding this book: Anniversary Day: Alluded to in the text, is now known as Australia Day.

From On the Track by Lawson, Henry

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023