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Showing results for bank holiday. Search instead for major holiday.
Synonyms

bank holiday

American  

noun

bank holidays plural
  1. a weekday on which banks are closed by law; legal holiday.

  2. British. a secular day on which banks are closed, obligations then falling due being performable on the following secular day.


bank holiday British  

noun

  1. (in Britain) any of several weekdays on which banks are closed by law and which are observed as national holidays

"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

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of bank holiday

First recorded in 1870–75

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:

The National Trust has asked people to be more considerate after a beauty spot was left covered in litter after the bank holiday weekend.

From BBC May 28, 2026

His death was one of a spate of drownings in open water across England on the bank holiday weekend and into this week, as temperatures reached record highs.

From BBC May 27, 2026

They said it took them more than two days to clear New Brighton beach after thousands visited the resort on bank holiday Monday.

From BBC May 27, 2026

A number of migrants who crossed the English Channel over the bank holiday weekend have been charged with illegal immigration offences, with some jailed.

From BBC May 27, 2026

If Christmas Day and New Year's Day fall on a Sunday, the next Monday following is the bank holiday.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 3, Part 1, Slice 2 "Baconthorpe" to "Bankruptcy" by Various

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