holiday
noun
a day fixed by law or custom on which ordinary business is suspended in commemoration of some event or in honor of some person.
Showing results for holiday.
Search instead for
hylidae.
holiday
1 American
[hol-i-day]
/ ˈhɒl ɪˌdeɪ /
noun
-
holidays
plural
-
a day fixed by law or custom on which ordinary business is suspended in commemoration of some event or in honor of some person.
-
any day of exemption from work (distinguished from working day).
-
a time or period of exemption from any requirement, duty, assessment, etc..
New businesses may be granted a one-year tax holiday.
-
a religious feast day; holy day, especially any of several usually commemorative holy days observed in Judaism.
-
Chiefly British. Sometimes holidays. a period of cessation from work or one of recreation; vacation.
-
an unintentional gap left on a plated, coated, or painted surface.
adjective
-
of or relating to a festival; festive; joyous.
a holiday mood.
-
suitable for a holiday.
holiday attire.
verb (used without object)
-
holidays,
present (3rd person singular)
-
holidayed,
past participle, past
-
holidaying
present participle
Holiday
2
American
[hol-i-day]
/ ˈhɒl ɪˌdeɪ /
noun
holiday
1
British
/ ˈhɒlɪˌdeɪ, -dɪ /
noun
-
(often plural)
-
US and Canadian word: vacation. a period in which a break is taken from work or studies for rest, travel, or recreation
-
( as modifier )
a holiday mood
-
-
a day on which work is suspended by law or custom, such as a religious festival, bank holiday, etc
verb
Holiday
2
British
/ ˈhɒlɪˌdeɪ /
noun
holiday
Idioms
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
holidaysimple
-
holidayssimple
-
have holidayedperfect
-
has holidayedperfect
-
am holidayingprogressive
-
are holidayingprogressive
-
is holidayingprogressive
-
have been holidayingperfect progressive
-
has been holidayingperfect progressive
Past
-
holidayedsimple
-
had holidayedperfect
-
was holidayingprogressive
-
were holidayingprogressive
-
had been holidayingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of holiday
First recorded before 950; Middle English; Old English hāligdæg; equivalent to holy + day
Explanation
A holiday celebrates a person, anniversary, religious belief or other occasion. You might observe the Indian holiday of Holi, and take a week off of work to celebrate with your family. A holiday is an occasion recognized by the state or federal government and marked on calendars, like Thanksgiving in the United States. Most holidays are celebratory and fun, and just about all of them mean no work or school. You can also take a holiday, or vacation. Holiday comes from "holy" and "day," meaning a religious festival, and the word was even pronounced that way until the sixteenth century.
Vocabulary lists containing holiday
Memorial Day Words
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Easter Vocabulary
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Passover Vocabulary
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
See Examples For:
Prada last week introduced its own holiday effort, a whimsical combination of live action and animation featuring the hand-drawn illustrations of artists led by Disney alumnus John Pomeroy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026
But CCI France voiced concern about the impact of the protests on retail activity ahead of the year-end holiday season, a peak period for businesses.
From Barron's ● Nov. 1, 2026
Whether you find holiday shopping daunting or exciting, our team of journalists is here to help.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 1, 2026
Companies are going just-in-time with their hiring for the busy holiday shopping season.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026
The story of Alfred Jackson and the others at that holiday gathering offers a very different look at the lives of enslaved people.
From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis
It is modelled on the School Holiday Food Grant scheme introduced during the pandemic, which paid qualifying families £27 per child every fortnight.
From BBC ● Oct. 12, 2026
Holiday spending on travel and services offers a gauge of consumer demand, which remains weak amid a persistent property slump and subdued confidence.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
Holiday flights can be among the biggest travel expenses of the year.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 28, 2026
When asked if the team was ready to face Birmingham, Holiday suddenly got excited.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 21, 2026
And that was how I got to be part of the Long Island Shakespeare Company’s Holiday Extravaganza, which was opening next month.
From "The Wednesday Wars" by Gary D. Schmidt
Nor do the holidays and cozy handcrafting inherently go hand in hand for marketers; Coca-Cola became one of the avatars of generative-AI advertising with its 2024 and 2025 “Holidays Are Coming” campaigns.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026
French students returning from autumn holidays blocked some high schools on Monday, determined to reinvigorate a protest movement despite government concessions during the break.
From Barron's ● Nov. 2, 2026
Takaichi told parliament earlier this month that she had recorded episodes of Vivant and planned to watch them over the year-end holidays.
From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026
Raman’s office said it had identified funding for a pilot plan to address traffic around the Hollywood sign on peak visitor days and holidays.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 28, 2026
As holidays go, this is the best I’ve ever had.
From "Free Lunch" by Rex Ogle
Eileen Elgar, who died in 1980, used to live near the Hotel Miramar in Bournemouth where Tolkien and his wife holidayed every year.
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026
He had holidayed with Trump's Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and made connections with Mark Burnett, the TV produce of the Apprentice, the show that sparked Trump's rise to power.
From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2025
In a video statement issued from the hospital, he appeared to be in good spirits and said he had holidayed at the Sea of Galilee without properly protecting himself from a heatwave.
From Reuters ● Jul. 16, 2023
More than 18 million people holidayed in Greece in 2021.
From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2022
Our entire family, dad, mum, my two brothers and I, had holidayed at their place a year earlier.
From Free from School by Rahul Alvares
Josimar Medina, a 31-year-old Peruvian who was holidaying in Spain with his girlfriend, said he was sleeping on the Renfe train when "I woke up and I was in the air."
From Barron's ● Oct. 29, 2026
She decided to leave Kyiv in June after holidaying abroad this summer and seeing people living "normal" lives.
From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026
Tudor Davies lives in London and is holidaying in Glencoe with his family.
From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026
Speaking to AFP by phone, a Moscow resident holidaying in Feodosia on Crimea's southeastern coast said earlier this week that "everyone is afraid: locals and visitors alike."
From Barron's ● Jun. 26, 2026
The earliest account we have of a Lethifold was written by the wizard Flavius Belby, who was fortunate enough to survive a Lethifold attack in 1782 while holidaying in Papua New Guinea.
From "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" by J.K. Rowling
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
