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Glite Dictionary
bank holiday

bank holiday

3 2.3
A public holiday when banks and many shops and offices close
  • noun
  • /bæŋk ˈhɒlədeɪ/
  • UK
: día festivo
  • But it turns out Monday was a bank holiday and her regular vet was off.
  • bank holiday weekend
  • bank holiday day

Well, it's just been a bank holiday weekend, hasn't it?

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Examples

  • Many people take a trip during the bank holiday.

  • It's Tuesday, it's past the bank holiday weekend.

  • But where did you expect to get cash on New Year's Day, a bank holiday?

    After the Thin Man (1936)

  • It was a bank holiday, everything was shut.

    Eulogy (2020)

  • With the bank holiday nearly here, many Londoners will be planning to go away.

    6 Days (2017)

  • It was the bank holiday weekend at the end of May.

    Fiction book (1996)

  • It's a bank holiday.

    American Outlaws (2001)

  • Personally, I've thought a bank holiday is likely over the next 12 months in an attempt to forestall a panic run on the banks.

    Blog text (10)

  • In England, for example, there had been forty-seven bank holidays in 1761; by 1834, there were only four.

    Academic text (1992)

  • On the bank holiday, all the schools were closed, and families gathered to celebrate.

Synonyms

holiday
vsbank holiday
∞ 1.0

A day when most people do not have to work because of a law or custom

is more specific, pointing to banks and most businesses closing in some places
day off
vsbank holiday
299 1.1

A day when you do not have to work

is a publicly recognized day that mainly causes banks and businesses to close
national holiday
vsbank holiday
15 1.0

A public day when most shops and government offices close across the whole country

is not limited to nationwide observances but stresses bank and business shutdowns
day of rest
vsbank holiday
10 2.3

A day when people do not work and relax, often for religious reasons

focuses instead on official closures of banks and most businesses rather than rest
public holiday
vsbank holiday
  • UK
5 1.4

A day when offices and shops are closed by law for most people

is used mainly in some countries and highlights bank and business closures
legal holiday
vsbank holiday
  • Formal
1 1.8

A day that the law says people do not work and offices are closed

emphasizes actual closures of banks and most businesses in certain regions

How Widespread

public holiday
  • UK
5 1.4
bank holiday
  • UK
3 2.3

Surface Forms

bank holiday singular
bank holidays plural

Morphology

bank + holiday

The compound is compositionally transparent: 'bank' modifies 'holiday' to indicate a holiday associated with banks (i.e., when banks are closed). A B1 learner who knows 'bank' and 'holiday' can reasonably infer it refers to a public holiday, particularly in UK/Commonwealth contexts, without needing prior exposure.

Etymology

The name bank holiday comes from days when banks closed and workers had a day off. Because many shops and offices closed too, the phrase now means a 'public holiday'.