vacation
Americannoun
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a period of suspension of work, study, or other activity, usually used for rest, recreation, or travel; recess or holiday.
Schoolchildren are on vacation now.
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a part of the year, regularly set aside, when normal activities of law courts, legislatures, etc., are suspended.
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freedom or release from duty, business, or activity.
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an act or instance of vacating.
verb (used without object)
noun
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a period of the year when the law courts or universities are closed
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a period in which a break is taken from work or studies for rest, travel, or recreation Also called (in Britain and certain other countries) holiday
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the act of departing from or abandoning property, etc
verb
Other Word Forms
- minivacation noun
- prevacation noun
- vacationer noun
- vacationist noun
- vacationless adjective
Etymology
Origin of vacation
First recorded in 1350–1400; from Latin vacātiōn-, stem of vacātiō “freedom from something”; equivalent to vacate + -ion; replacing Middle English vacacioun, from Anglo-French
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.
The raid has been jarring in the Oxnard School District, which was closed for summer vacation but reopened on July 10 to contact families and ensure their well-being, Supt.
From Los Angeles Times
He keeps a low profile outside Disney’s offices and rarely speaks publicly, though he is active on X and Instagram, where he shares photos of himself with stars at premieres and on vacation in Iceland.
Switzerland, Cambodia, Cyprus and Canada, joining my parents over vacations.
"Sometimes it feels like she just hasn't come home from her vacation," Lee said.
From Barron's
And I’ve been vacationing to this specific Shore town in South Jersey, Sea Isle City, for a long time, especially since I met my wife in 2014.
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.