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• Sabbatical
  Sabbatical

  adjective

  of or pertaining or appropriate to the Sabbath.
• sabbatical
  sabbatical

  adjective

  denoting a period of leave granted to university staff, teachers, etc, esp approximately every seventh year

Sabbatical

American  

[suh-bat-i-kuhl] / səˈbæt ɪ kəl /

Sometimes Sabbatic

adjective

1. of or pertaining or appropriate to the Sabbath.

2. (lowercase) of or relating to a sabbatical year.

3. (lowercase) bringing a period of rest.

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noun

1. (lowercase) sabbatical year.

2. (lowercase) any extended period of leave from one's customary work, especially for rest, to acquire new skills or training, etc.

sabbatical ¹ British  

/ səˈbætɪkəl /

adjective

1. denoting a period of leave granted to university staff, teachers, etc, esp approximately every seventh year

   a sabbatical year

   sabbatical leave

2. denoting a post that renders the holder eligible for such leave

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noun

1. any sabbatical period

Sabbatical ² British  

/ səˈbætɪkəl /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or appropriate to the Sabbath as a day of rest and religious observance

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noun

1. short for sabbatical year

Other Word Forms

• Sabbaticalness
  noun
• non-Sabbatic
  adjective
• non-Sabbatical
  adjective
• Sabbatically
  adverb
• non-Sabbatically
  adverb

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Etymology

Origin of Sabbatical

First recorded in 1605–15; equivalent to Greek sabbatikós (from sábbat(on) Sabbath + -ikos -ic ) + -al ¹

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Explanation

If your job entitles you, you probably take a sabbatical every seven years, which means you get a year of paid leave to do whatever you want to further your understanding of the world. The word sabbatical, which can be a noun or an adjective, comes from the Greek word sabatikos, which means “of the Sabbath,” the day of rest that happens every seventh day. Most teaching jobs come with the promise of a sabbatical, which is a year of not having to teach, though you still get paid. During your sabbatical, you usually are expected to do research and perhaps write a book — in other words, keep working.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Sabbatical sabbatical

She is among leaders of the Sabbatical Project, which aims to create “a more humane relationship with work” by encouraging extended leaves.

From Seattle Times ● Apr. 11, 2024

Portions of the work were supported by a Research Sabbatical grant to Gilmore from Research to Prevent Blindness to explore the origins of antibiotic resistance.

From Science Daily ● Feb. 29, 2024

Research by DJ DiDonna, founder of the Sabbatical Project and a senior lecturer at Harvard, found that 80 percent of people who take sabbaticals returned to their company refreshed.

From Washington Post ● Feb. 19, 2023

Sabbatical haze, she adds, her explanation these days for everything.

From The New Yorker ● Aug. 26, 2019

The school of Shammai say, “its fruit must not be eaten in the Sabbatical year.”

From Hebrew Literature by Epiphanius Wilson

It was the first trophy of his career, and Trippier returned to the Premier League after his Spanish sabbatical renewed, refreshed and ready to enjoy a successful spell at Newcastle.

From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026

The project took shape after Lepland arrived at Caltech for a sabbatical.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 26, 2026

Harry then spent a sabbatical year in Australia and Africa, caring for orphans in Lesotho, where he founded a charity in Diana's memory.

From Barron's ● Aug. 23, 2026

“What if one grandkid wants a sabbatical? What if they want to ‘retire’ at 50?

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 21, 2026

“I trust he’s still away on sabbatical in the Wandering Isles?”

From "Amari and the Night Brothers" by B.B. Alston

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