vacation

See also: VACation

English

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English vacation, vacacion, vacacioun, from Anglo-Norman vacacioun, from Old French vacacion, vacation, from Latin vacātiō. Equivalent to vacate +‎ -ion.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /vəˈkeɪ.ʃən/, /veɪˈkeɪ.ʃən/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /veɪˈkeɪ.ʃən/, /vəˈkeɪ.ʃən/

  • Audio (US):

    (file)

• (India) IPA^(key): /ʋe.keː.ʃən/, /ʋɪ.keː.ʃən/
• Rhymes: -eɪʃən
• Hyphenation: va‧ca‧tion

Noun

vacation (countable and uncountable, plural vacations)

1. An extended trip or journey away from home for rest or pleasure. [from 19th c.]

   Synonym: holiday (Commonwealth)

   We were on vacation in Florida this year.

2. An extended period of leisure time away from work or school.

   Synonym: holiday (Commonwealth)

   Schoolchildren are on vacation this week.

3. A period during which official activity or business is formally suspended; an official holiday from university, law courts etc. [from 15th c.]
4. The act of vacating something; moving out. [from 19th c.]

   Synonyms: departure, moveout

   The Conservative Party’s vacation of the centre ground gave an opportunity to its opponents.

5. (US, law) The act of making legally void.
6. (general) Freedom from some business or activity. [from 14th c.]
7. (obsolete) Free time given over to a specific purpose; occupation, activity. [15th–17th c.]

   Synonyms: annulment, revocation

   • 1603, Michel de Montaigne, chapter 28, in John Florio, transl., The Essayes […], book II, London: […] Val[entine] Simmes for Edward Blount […], →OCLC:

     The first exploited his, sundrie waies, and excelleth in military exploits, and utilitie of his publike vacations.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:vacation

Derived terms

• adventurecation
• baecation
• come on vacation, leave on probation
• coolcation
• daycation
• foodcation
• gaycation
• girlcation
• grippy socks vacation
• grippy sock vacation
• haycation
• homecation
• ladycation
• long vacation
• mancation
• microvacation
• minivacation
• naycation
• nearcation
• nonvacation
• postvacation
• prevacation
• racecation
• recation
• sexcation
• sleepcation
• staycation
• summer vacation
• Vacation Bible
• Vacation Bible School
• vacation day
• vacationer
• vacationgoer
• vacation home
• vacationist
• Vacationland
• vacationland
• vacationless
• vacationship
• vacation time
• vaca, vacay
• workcation

Translations

trip away from home

• Dutch: vakantie (nl) f
• German: Urlaub (de) m
• Hungarian: nyaralás (hu)
• Icelandic: frí (is) n
• Irish: saoire f
• Polish: wakacje (pl) nvir pl, wczasy (pl) nvir pl
• Swedish: semester (sv) c

period of leisure time — see also time off,‎ leave of absence,‎ break

• Albanian: pushim (sq) m
• Arabic: عُطْلَة f (ʕuṭla), إِجَازَة f (ʔijāza)

  Hijazi Arabic: إجازة f (ʔijāza)

• Armenian: արձակուրդ (hy) (arjakurd)
• Azerbaijani: məzuniyyət (az) pl, tətil (az)
• Basque: opor
• Belarusian: адпачы́нак m (adpačýnak), во́дпуск (be) m (vódpusk), кані́кулы f pl (kaníkuly) (students, MP's)
• Bulgarian: вака́нция (bg) f (vakáncija), о́тпуска (bg) f (ótpuska), о́тпуск (bg) m (ótpusk)
• Burmese: အားလပ်ရက် (a:lap-rak), အလုပ်ပိတ်ရက် (my) (a.luppitrak)
• Cherokee: ᎤᎾᏦᏪᏐᎸᏍᏛ (unatsowesolvsdv)
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 假期 (gaa³ kei⁴)

  Mandarin: 假期 (zh) (jiàqī)

• Czech: prázdniny (cs) f pl (at school), dovolená (cs) f (at work), dovolená (cs) f
• Danish: ferie (da) c
• Dutch: vakantie (nl) f
• Esperanto: libertempo
• Estonian: puhkus
• Finnish: loma (fi), vapaapäivä (fi)
• French: vacances (fr) f or pl
• Galician: vacacións f pl
• Georgian: არდადეგები (ardadegebi)
• German: Ferien (de) f pl, Urlaub (de) m
• Greek: διακοπές (el) f pl (diakopés)
• Hebrew: חופש \ חֹפֶשׁ (he) m (khófesh)
• Hindi: छुट्टी (hi) f (chuṭṭī)
• Hungarian: szabadság (hu), vakáció (hu), szünidő (hu)
• Icelandic: frí (is) n
• Ido: vakanco (io)
• Interlingua: vacantia
• Irish: saoire f
• Italian: vacanza (it) f
• Japanese: 休暇 (ja) (きゅうか, kyūka), 休み (ja) (やすみ, yasumi), バカンス (ja) (bakansu), ヴァカンス (vakansu), バケーション (ja) (bakēshon)
• Kazakh: демалыс (demalys)
• Khmer: រហែ (km) (rɔhae), ល្ហែ (km) (lhae)
• Korean: 휴가(休暇) (ko) (hyuga)
• Kurdish:

  Northern Kurdish: betlane (ku), tatîl (ku)

• Kyrgyz: отпуск (ky) (otpusk), дем алыш (ky) (dem alış)
• Ladino: vakansas
• Lao: ຍາມພັກ (nyām phak), ມື້ພັກ (lo) (mư̄ phak)
• Latin: cessātiō, fēriae f pl
• Latvian: brīvdiena f
• Lithuanian: atóstogos (lt) f
• Macedonian: одмор (mk) m (odmor)
• Malay: cuti (ms)
• Maltese: vaganza, btala, vaganza, btala
• Mongolian:

  Cyrillic: амралт (mn) (amralt)

• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: ferie (no) m

  Nynorsk: ferie m

• Persian:

  Iranian Persian: تَعْطیل (ta'til), تَعْطیلات (ta'tilât)

• Plautdietsch: Vakassion m
• Polish: urlop (pl) m inan, wakacje (pl) nvir pl, wczasy (pl) nvir pl
• Portuguese: férias (pt) f pl, vacação (pt) f, tolerância (pt)
• Quechua: samay pacha
• Romanian: vacanță (ro) f
• Russian: о́тпуск (ru) m (ótpusk), (students, MP's) кани́кулы (ru) f pl (kaníkuly), (short, may be unpaid) отгу́л (ru) m (otgúl)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: ра́спуст m, о̀дмор m, фе̑рије f pl, пра̑знӣк m

  Latin: ráspust (sh) m, òdmor (sh) m, fȇrije (sh) f pl, prȃznīk (sh) m

• Sikkimese: གུང་སེང (gung seng)
• Slovak: dovolenka f
• Slovene: dopust m, počitnice f pl
• Sorbian:

  Lower Sorbian: prozniny pl, ferije pl, dowol m

• Spanish: vacaciones (es) f pl, vacación (es) f
• Swedish: semester (sv) c, ledighet (sv) c
• Tajik: таътил (tg) (ta'til)
• Thai: วันหยุด (th) (wan-yùt)
• Tibetan: གུང་གསེང (gung gseng)
• Turkish: tatil (tr)
• Turkmen: dynç alyş, kanikul (students)
• Ukrainian: відпу́стка f (vidpústka), кані́кули f pl (kaníkuly) (students, MP's)
• Urdu: چُھٹّی f (chuṭṭī), تَعْطِیل f (ta'tīl), تَعْطِیلات f pl (ta'tīlāt)
• Uyghur: دەم ئېلىش (dem ëlish)
• Uzbek: otpuska (uz), dam olish, taʻtil
• Vietnamese: kì nghỉ
• Yiddish: וואַקאַציע f (vakatsye)

official holiday period

• Belarusian: кані́кулы f pl (kaníkuly)
• Bulgarian: вака́нция (bg) f (vakáncija)
• Catalan: vacança (ca) f
• Danish: ferie (da) c
• Dutch: vakantie (nl) f
• Estonian: puhkus
• Finnish: loma (fi)
• French: vacances (fr) f or pl
• Georgian: არდადეგები (ardadegebi)
• German: Ferien (de) f pl
• Hebrew: חופשה \ חֻפְשָׁה (he) f (khufshá)
• Hungarian: szabadság (hu), munkaszünet (hu), pihenőidő (hu)
• Icelandic: frí (is) n
• Irish: laethanta saoire m pl
• Italian: vacanza (it) f, feria (it) f
• Latin: fēriae f pl
• Macedonian: распуст m (raspust)
• Polish: święto (pl) n
• Portuguese: feriado (pt), féria (pt) f
• Russian: кани́кулы (ru) f pl (kaníkuly)
• Sikkimese: གུང་སེང (gung seng)
• Sorbian:

  Lower Sorbian: prozniny pl, ferije pl

• Spanish: vacación (es) f, feriado (es) m
• Swedish: lov (sv) n (schools and universities), ferie (sv) c (schools)
• Ukrainian: кані́кули f pl (kaníkuly)
• Vietnamese: nghỉ lễ

the act of vacating something; moving out of something

• Bulgarian: опра́зване (bg) n (oprázvane), освобожда́ване (bg) n (osvoboždávane)
• Danish: fratrædelse c, fraflytning c
• Estonian: vabastamine
• Finnish: tyhjentäminen (fi), hylkääminen (fi), jättäminen (fi), poismuutto, lähtö (fi)
• Georgian: გათავისუფლება (gatavisupleba)
• German: Preisgabe (de) f
• Hungarian: kiürítés (hu), kiköltözés (hu), (becoming or being vacant) megüresedés (hu), üresedés (hu), betöltetlenség
• Macedonian: испразнување n (ispraznuvanje), ослободување n (osloboduvanje), оставање n (ostavanje)
• Polish: opróżnienie n, opuszczenie (pl) n
• Portuguese: vacação (pt) f, vagação f, vacatura (pt) f, vagatura f
• Russian: освобожде́ние (ru) n (osvoboždénije), оставле́ние (ru) n (ostavlénije)
• Spanish: vacación (es) f (rare), vacatura f
• Turkish:

  Ottoman Turkish: تخلیه (tahliye)

the act of making legally void

• Estonian: tühistamine, annuleerimine
• Finnish: mitätöinti (fi)
• Georgian: გაუქმება (gaukmeba)
• German: Annullierung (de) f
• Hungarian: érvénytelenítés (hu), megsemmisítés (hu), hatályon kívül helyezés
• Japanese: 休廷 (ja) (きゅうてい, kyūtei)
• Macedonian: поништување n (poništuvanje)
• Polish: anulowanie (pl) n
• Romanian: anulare (ro), golire (ro)
• Russian: отме́на (ru) f (otména)

freedom from some business or activity

• Bulgarian: вака́нция (bg) f (vakáncija)
• Czech: prázdniny (cs) f pl
• French: vacances (fr) f or pl
• Hungarian: szünet (hu)
• Latin: cessātiō f
• Polish: wakacje (pl) nvir pl, wczasy (pl) nvir pl
• Portuguese: férias (pt)

Verb

vacation (third-person singular simple present vacations, present participle vacationing, simple past and past participle vacationed)

1. (intransitive) To spend or take a vacation.

   This year, we’re vacationing in Mexico.

Synonyms

• (UK) go on holiday
• go on vacation
• holiday

Translations

to spend or take a vacation

• Catalan: fer vacances
• Danish: tage på ferie, holde ferie
• Dutch: op vakantie gaan
• Esperanto: ferii
• Finnish: lomailla (fi); viettää lomaa (spend a vacation), viettää loma (spend a vacation completely)
• French: aller en vacances
• Galician: ir de vacacións
• German: Urlaub machen, Ferien machen
• Hungarian: szabadságra megy, szabadságot vesz ki, szabadságát tölti, vakációzik (hu), nyaral (hu), üdül (hu)
• Icelandic: fara í frí
• Irish: dul ar saoire
• Italian: andare in vacanza
• Japanese: 休暇を取る (ja) (kyūka o toru), 休みを取る (ja) (yasumi o toru)
• Macedonian: о́дмора (ódmora), ко́ристи го́дишен о́дмор (kóristi gódišen ódmor)
• Polish: spędzać wakacje impf, spędzić wakacje pf, wczasować się impf
• Portuguese: sair de férias
• Russian: проводи́ть о́тпуск (provodítʹ ótpusk), провести́ о́тпуск (provestí ótpusk)
• Spanish: vacacionar (es)
• Swedish: semestra (sv)
• Vietnamese: đi nghỉ, nghỉ mát (vi)
• Welsh: mynd ar wyliau

Related terms

• vacate

Anagrams

• Octavian

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /va.ka.sjɔ̃/

• Audio (France (Lyon)):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: va‧ca‧tion

Noun

vacation f (plural vacations)

1. (law) session (clarification of this definition is needed)

Further reading

• “vacation”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012