sabbatical year

noun

1
often capitalized S : a year of rest for the land observed every seventh year in ancient Judea
2
: a leave often with pay granted usually every seventh year (as to a college professor) for rest, travel, or research

called also sabbatical leave

Examples of sabbatical year in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Jonathan Lofgren, a professor of addiction counseling at Minneapolis College, launched the college’s program in 2017 after a sabbatical year studying recovery on college campuses. Leah Fabel, The Christian Science Monitor, 8 Apr. 2024 By 2018, when Ben-Zvi had a sabbatical year at the Institute for Advanced Study, the two sides had inched closer together, most notably in work released that same year by Vincent Lafforgue, a researcher at the Fourier Institute in Grenoble. Kevin Hartnett, Quanta Magazine, 12 Oct. 2023 In 1970, when the family left for a sabbatical year in Trujillo, Peru, the Kochs made sure to rent their home to a Black family, apparently the first in the neighborhood. Christopher Reynolds, Los Angeles Times, 18 Apr. 2023 Every seventh year, the Torah tells us in Parshat Behar, is the Shemittah (sabbatical year). Rabbi Avi Weiss, sun-sentinel.com, 3 May 2021 Three of those appearances were in Charli Turner Thorne's early coaching years at ASU and another during her sabbatical year off in 2011-12. Jeff Metcalfe, The Arizona Republic, 17 Mar. 2021 After two of these cycles fully take place, the sabbatical year (the seventh year) occurs when no tithe is taken at all. Rabbi Avi Weiss, sun-sentinel.com, 31 Aug. 2020 In India, sabbatical years are often frowned upon, fit only for the rich and pampered. Diksha Madhok, Quartz India, 5 Dec. 2019 Greta is taking a sabbatical year from school to attend conferences and meetings with policymakers and those impacted by climate change. Ray Sanchez, CNN, 11 Oct. 2019

Word History

First Known Use

1599, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of sabbatical year was in 1599

Dictionary Entries Near sabbatical year

Cite this Entry

“Sabbatical year.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sabbatical%20year. Accessed 21 Dec. 2024.

More from Merriam-Webster on sabbatical year

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!