Meaning of holiday In English

• 0 a time when someone does not go to work or school but is free to do what they want, such as travel or relax:

  • a camping/skiing holiday

  • Have you decided where you're going for your holiday(s) this year?

  • Patricia is on holiday next week.

  • How many days' holiday do you get with your new job?

  • We thought we'd go to France for our summer holiday.

  • Surely the school holidays start soon.

  • a public holiday

  • St Patrick's Day is a holiday in Ireland.

  • The flexible features of this mortgage allow the borrower to make overpayments and take payment holidays.

  • We arranged a flexible business loan with a two year capital repayment holiday which gave us the breathing space we needed.

  • Struggling homeowners were handed more support as the UK's biggest banks agreed to offer a mortgage holiday to those unable to meet payments.

  • We were at home for the holidays.

• 1 to take a holiday:

  • My parents are holidaying in Spain this year.

• 2 a day for celebration when many people are allowed to stay away from work or school:

  • a national holiday

• 3 a time when you are away from home, and can relax, visit new places, etc.:

  • go on holiday Are you going away on holiday this year?

  • Online holiday sales are up 28% compared with the same period last year.

  • a holiday company

  • holiday insurance

• 4 a time when someone does not go to work but is free to do what they want, such as travel or relax:

  • My PA does most of my work when I'm on holiday.

  • She had already used all her holiday entitlement.

  • holiday pay

  • the summer holidays

  • How many days of vacation do you get a year?

• 5 an official day when most people do not go to work and schools, banks and many businesses are closed:

  • Wall Street was closed for a public holiday.

  • May 1 is a holiday in many countries.

• 6 the period between late December and early January that includes Christmas, Hanukkah, and New Year:

  • Online sales were buoyant during the holidays.

• 7 a time when you do not have to pay something that you usually have to pay:

  • take a holiday from sth If you are in financial difficulties, ask your bank whether you can take a holiday from interest repayments.

  • a tax/contribution/mortgage holiday