national holiday
Americannoun
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national holidays
plural
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a holiday that is observed throughout a nation.
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a holiday that is legally established by a national government rather than by a municipal or state government.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of national holiday
An Americanism dating back to 1865–70
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.
Held each year on 14 July, the national holiday marks the storming of the Bastille fortress in 1789, a key event from the French Revolution.
From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026
Temperatures were expected to remain high through France's Bastille Day national holiday on Tuesday, according to the Meteo-France weather service.
From Barron's ● Jul. 13, 2026
After visiting Nisa, the 20 or so tourists with her group returned to Ashgabat for Carpet Day -- a national holiday honouring Turkmen rug artisans -- before visiting yurts and tasting local produce.
From Barron's ● Jun. 23, 2026
Closed Monday for a national holiday and briefly insulated from heavy selling elsewhere, the South Korean stock market reopened Tuesday to heavy losses.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 3, 2026
The fair prompted President Harrison to designate October 12 a national holiday, Columbus Day, which today serves to anchor a few thousand parades and a three-day weekend.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
Definitions 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.
