busman's holiday

English

Etymology

First recorded in 1893 in the UK. The idea is that a busman, to go off on a holiday, would take an excursion by bus, thereby engaging in a similar activity to his work.

Pronunciation

• Audio (AU)

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Noun

busman's holiday (plural busman's holidays)

1. (idiomatic) A holiday or vacation during which one does something similar to what one does as work.
   • 1994, Diane Heilenman, Gardening in the Lower Midwest: A Practical Guide for the New Zones 5 and 6, Indiana University Press (→ISBN), page 114:

     Although it is in the nature of a busman's holiday, I always try to visit a nursery and a botanic garden when I'm traveling.

   • 2015, Michael Bamberger, Men in Green, Simon and Schuster (→ISBN), page 254:

     I have come to realize that the busman's holiday is an elemental part of my life. Actually, I don't know where my work life stops and my recreational life begins.

References

• Michael Quinion, “Busman's holiday”, in Ballyhoo, Buckaroo, and Spuds: Ingenious Tales of Words and Their Origins, Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Books in association with Penguin Books, 2004, →ISBN.