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.
So sure had the hosts been of progressing with a draw, their government had already declared the following day a national holiday.
From BBC • Jun. 6, 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
Japanese markets are closed on Wednesday for a national holiday.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 6, 2026
Australia Day - a national holiday on 26 January - marks the 1788 landing of Britain's First Fleet in Sydney Cove and the start of colonisation.
From BBC • Feb. 5, 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.
