Meaning & use
sabbatical
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Meanings
nouncountable
A long break from regular work, often a year or a term, taken to rest, travel, study, or do research.
Grammar: Often used with on or take: she is on sabbatical; he took a sabbatical.
Patterns
- on sabbatical
- take a sabbatical
- sabbatical from something
The professor spent her sabbatical writing a book in Italy.
After ten years at the firm, he took a six-month sabbatical to travel.
Our teacher is on sabbatical this semester.
adjectivebefore a noun
Relating to a long leave from work, or to a period of rest, as in a sabbatical year.
Grammar: Used before a noun: sabbatical leave, sabbatical year.
Patterns
- sabbatical leave
- sabbatical year
She applied for sabbatical leave to finish her research.
In many universities, a sabbatical year is available every seventh year.
The company introduced a sabbatical program for long-serving staff.
Word forms
| plural | sabbaticals |
|---|
Common combinations
- on sabbatical
- She is on sabbatical in Japan until June.
- take a sabbatical
- He decided to take a sabbatical to write a novel.
- paid sabbatical
- The firm offers a paid sabbatical after seven years.
- sabbatical leave
- Sabbatical leave is granted for research projects.
- return from sabbatical
- She returned from sabbatical with new ideas.
Synonyms and how they differ
- leave of absence
- Leave of absence is any approved time away from work, while sabbatical suggests a long break for study or renewal.
- career break
- Career break is a modern, general phrase for time out of work, usually without any link to a job's formal benefits.
- gap year
- Gap year refers to a year out between school and university, while sabbatical comes after you have already worked.
- time off
- Time off is informal and can be a day or a week, while sabbatical means a long, planned period.
Word family
- Sabbath noun
- the weekly day of rest and worship in Judaism and some Christian traditions
- sabbatic adjective
- a rare word meaning of or like the Sabbath
- sabbatarian noun
- a person who keeps the Sabbath strictly
Commonly confused: sabbatical or Sabbath?
sabbatical vs Sabbath
The Sabbath is the weekly day of rest and worship, while a sabbatical is a long break from work taken once in several years.
Practice
The professor is on ___ this year and will return to teach next autumn.
Choose one answer.
On sabbatical means taking a long, planned leave from work and then returning. Retirement is permanent, and probation is a trial period, so neither fits someone returning to teach.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “sabbatical”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.