public holiday
Official free day
A public holiday is a day designated by government or tradition when most businesses and schools close—Christmas, Independence Day, bank holidays.
The term emphasizes official recognition rather than personal observance: The office is closed on public holidays.
In American usage, the simpler "holiday" often suffices; "public holiday" is more common in British and international English.
Ceremonial public procession
- fireworksExplosive light displays
- festivalOrganized public celebration
- carnivalTraveling amusement attraction
- ceremonyFormal event marking occasions
feast · pageant · revelry · gathering · commemoration · banquet · procession · fair
Keeping of customs
- customHabitual group practice
- ritualCeremonial set of actions
- heritageInherited cultural legacy
- ceremonyFormal event marking occasions
commemoration · legacy · rite · folklore · practice · annual · cultural · religious
Leisure time away
- breakInterrupt continuity
- downtimePeriod of non-operation
- relaxationState of being unwound
- restCessation of activity
respite · repose · recreation · getaway · staycation · leave · time-off · recess
Devotion to one's homeland
- flagCloth symbol or signal
- anthemOfficial song of praise
- independenceFreedom from external control
- memorialThing preserving remembrance
sovereignty · citizenship · veterans · republic · remembrance · founding · liberation · unity
parade
Ceremonial public procession
- fireworksExplosive light displays
- festivalOrganized public celebration
- carnivalTraveling amusement attraction
ceremony · feast · pageant · revelry · gathering · commemoration · banquet · procession · fair · spectacle
observance
Keeping of customs
ceremony · commemoration · legacy · rite · folklore · practice · annual · cultural · religious · ancestral
vacation
Leisure time away
- breakInterrupt continuity
- downtimePeriod of non-operation
- relaxationState of being unwound
rest · respite · repose · recreation · getaway · staycation · leave · time-off · recess · breather
patriotism
Devotion to one's homeland
- flagCloth symbol or signal
- anthemOfficial song of praise
- independenceFreedom from external control
memorial · sovereignty · citizenship · veterans · republic · remembrance · founding · liberation · unity · civic
- holidaysChristmas, Easter, Thanksgiving, Halloween, Valentine's Day
- time offvacation, weekend, break, rest, day off
- celebrationsgraduation, festival, party, wedding, fireworks
- AmericanaAmerican flag, Fourth of July, bald eagle, Thanksgiving, apple pie
- coronationcoronation, crowning, crown, enthronement, anointing
- Mawlidreligious festival, recitations, praise songs, devotional music, communal prayers
public holidayworking day
Standard business hours period
workday · business day · school day · weekday · nine-to-five
public, holiday, publish, publication, publishing, published, publisher, publicly, publishable