sabbatical

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   an extended period of authorized leave from regular work, often for study, travel, or research

   The professor used her sabbatical to complete a book on urban history.

2. 2
   adj

   relating to the Sabbath or suggestive of formal Sabbath observance

   The villagers wore their most sabbatical clothes for the Sunday gathering.

From Latin sabbaticus, 'of the Sabbath,' ultimately from Hebrew shabbat, 'rest.' The modern leave sense grew from the biblical sabbatical year, in which fields rested every seventh year.

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