national holiday
Americannoun
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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.
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.
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 group also reportedly plans to appeal to lawmakers to declare Buddha's birthday - called Vesak - a national holiday - but their expedition has gained traction beyond this policy request.
From BBC • Feb. 10, 2026
Japanese markets are closed on Wednesday for a national holiday.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 6, 2026
Thousands rallied for Indigenous peoples' rights on Australia's national holiday, Australia Day, which marks the 1788 arrival of a British fleet in Sydney Harbour.
From Barron's • Jan. 27, 2026
If he’d been listening to the radio more regularly, he would have realized Friday was a national holiday and prepared for the possibility of no food line.
From "The Dead and the Gone" by Susan Beth Pfeffer
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.
