From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Holiday \Hol"i*day\, n. [Holy + day.]
1. A consecrated day; religious anniversary; a day set apart
in honor of some person, or in commemoration of some
event. See {Holyday}.
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2. A day of exemption from labor; a day of amusement and
gayety; a festival day.
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And young and old come forth to play
On a sunshine holiday. --Milton.
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3. (Law) A day fixed by law for suspension of business; a
legal holiday.
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Note: In the United States legal holidays, so called, are
determined by law, commonly by the statutes of the
several States. The holidays most generally observed
are: the 22d day of February (Washington's birthday),
the 30th day of May (Memorial day), the 4th day of July
(Independence day), the 25th day of December (Christmas
day). In most of the States the 1st day of January is a
holiday. When any of these days falls on Sunday,
usually the Monday following is observed as the
holiday. In many of the States a day in the spring (as
Good Friday, or the first Thursday in April), and a day
in the fall (as the last Thursday in November) are now
regularly appointed by Executive proclamation to be
observed, the former as a day of fasting and prayer,
the latter as a day of thanksgiving and are kept as
holidays. In England, the days of the greater church
feasts (designated in the calendar by a red letter, and
commonly called red-letter days) are observed as
general holidays. Bank holidays are those on which, by
act of Parliament, banks may suspend business. Although
Sunday is a holiday in the sense of a day when business
is legally suspended, it is not usually included in the
general term, the phrase "Sundays and holidays" being
more common.
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{The holidays}, any fixed or usual period for relaxation or
festivity; especially, Christmas and New Year's day with
the intervening time.
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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Holiday \Hol`i*day\, a.
1. Of or pertaining to a festival; cheerful; joyous; gay.
--Shak.
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2. Occurring rarely; adapted for a special occasion.
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Courage is but a holiday kind of virtue, to be
seldom exercised. --Dryden.
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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Vacation \Va*ca"tion\, n. [F., fr. L. vacatio a being free from
a duty, service, etc., fr. vacare. See {Vacate}.]
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1. The act of vacating; a making void or of no force; as, the
vacation of an office or a charter.
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2. Intermission of a stated employment, procedure, or office;
a period of intermission; rest; leisure.
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It was not in his nature, however, at least till
years had chastened it, to take any vacation from
controversy. --Palfrey.
[1913 Webster] Hence, specifically:
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(a) (Law) Intermission of judicial proceedings; the space
of time between the end of one term and the beginning
of the next; nonterm; recess. "With lawyers in the
vacation." --Shak.
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(b) A period of intermission of regular paid work or
employment, or of studies and exercises at an
educational institution; the time during which a
person temporarily ceases regular duties of any kind
and performs other activites, usually some form of
liesure; holidays; recess (at a school); as, the
spring vacation; to spend one's vacation travelling;
to paint the house while on vacation. Vacation is
typically used for rest, travel, or recreation, but
may be used for any purpose. In Britain this sense of
vacation is usually referred to as {holiday}.
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(c) The time when an office is vacant; esp. (Eccl.), the
time when a see, or other spiritual dignity, is
vacant.
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From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
holiday
n 1: leisure time away from work devoted to rest or pleasure;
"we get two weeks of vacation every summer"; "we took a
short holiday in Puerto Rico" [syn: {vacation}, {holiday}]
2: a day on which work is suspended by law or custom; "no mail
is delivered on federal holidays"; "it's a good thing that
New Year's was a holiday because everyone had a hangover"
v 1: spend or take a vacation [syn: {vacation}, {holiday}]
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