half term

British

noun

education
1. a short holiday midway through an academic term
2. ( as modifier )
  
  a half-term holiday

"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

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The radical plans could be unveiled in full as early as Monday, when MPs return to parliament, and there is likely to be dismay at a leak during recess and half term.

From BBC • Feb. 18, 2026

"I don't think I could consider working somewhere that didn't have the two-week half term now, just because it has such an impact on my wellbeing," he says.

From BBC • Oct. 17, 2025

Many schools have already said that they will follow the SCC dates and have a two week half term.

From BBC • Jul. 14, 2025

Part of the reason that SCC is making the change is because several schools already have a two week half term and the aim is to have more consistency.

From BBC • Jul. 14, 2025

‘This isn’t much of a half term for you, is it?’

From "The London Eye Mystery" by Siobhan Dowd

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