furlough
noun
fur·lough
| \ ˈfər-(ˌ)lō
\
\
Definition of furlough
(Entry 1 of 2)
1
: a leave of absence granted to a governmental or institutional employee (such as a soldier or civil servant)
The Army began furloughs in September as so-called 'sanity checks' for soldiers whose tour has stretched to nearly a year.— Jenny Deam
also
: a document authorizing such a leave of absence
2
: a temporary leave from work that is not paid and is often for a set period of time
One possible way to avoid layoffs is through furloughs—making workers take an unpaid leave of absence … .— Paul B. Brown
3
: a set period of time when a prisoner is allowed to leave a prison
Those probation officers are then able to monitor criminals serving their sentences in work camps or on furlough rather than in jail as a way of relieving overcrowding.— Richard Willing
furlough
verb
furloughed;
furloughing;
furloughs
Definition of furlough (Entry 2 of 2)
1
: to grant a leave of absence or furlough to (someone)
a soldier being furloughed a furloughed prisoner
2
: to put (a worker) on furlough : to lay off (a worker) for usually a brief or temporary period
… other airlines are placing pressure on the unionized pilots to take large salary cuts—at least those pilots who haven't already been "furloughed" (the word pilots use instead of the more plebeian "laid off").— George Hopkins Although no one could supply exact figures, sources in Washington, D.C., said nearly 500,000 federal workers were furloughed for all or part of Thursday. In the Los Angeles-Long Beach area about 11,000 of the 40,000 federal workers were sent home because of the operating fund impasse in Congress.— Jerry Belcher
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Synonyms for furlough
Synonyms: Noun
ax (or axe), discharge, dismissal, layoff, redundancy [chiefly British]
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Examples of furlough in a Sentence
Noun
Each employee will have a one-day furlough every month. the landscaping company usually has to put most of its personnel on furlough during the extremely slow winter monthsVerb
The company will consider furloughing a small number of workers.
Recent Examples on the Web: Noun
This week’s wanted suspect: Maddry Traman Fulgham, 29 Wanted: Fulgham is wanted on a felony warrant for absconding from a local work furlough program. — Alex Riggins, San Diego Union-Tribune, "San Diego’s Wanted: Absconding from work furlough," 8 Aug. 2019 Companies that need to trim costs should strongly consider alternatives to layoffs, such as buy-outs, furloughs, and salary cuts, for the sake of their own self-interest as well as the lives of their employees, Sucher says. — Sarah Todd, Quartz at Work, "The short but destructive history of mass layoffs," 12 July 2019 There have been multiple rounds of furloughs and layoffs, including in March, when 132 employees were let go. — Dawn Rhodes, chicagotribune.com, "Despite plummeting enrollment and layoffs, Western Illinois gives outgoing president generous exit: ‘He did much better than the university did’," 1 July 2019 Other cuts included frozen pay scales, furloughs and increased health insurance contributions, depending on the union. — Emily K. Coleman, Lake County News-Sun, "Zion City Council picks deputy to replace retiring police chief," 6 June 2019 Two of BamBrogan’s fellow co-founders had resigned in the months before the furloughs and the announcement that Arrivo was ceasing operations. — Sean O'kane, The Verge, "Hyperloop startup Arrivo is shutting down as workers are laid off," 15 Dec. 2018 The diocese staff has been reduced by 25 percent, and those left have taken pay cuts and unpaid furloughs. — Lisa Demer, Anchorage Daily News, "Diocese will pay $9.8 million to Alaska abuse victims," 25 Jan. 2010 The salary increases are still somewhat rare for longtime district educators who went without a pay raise between 2007 and 2014 and dealt with furloughs. — Andrew J. Campa, latimes.com, "Burbank teachers, district avoid conflict, agree to 1% raise," 21 June 2019 The dispute has resulted in furloughs among Military Order of the Purple Heart case workers, who manage about 130,000 disability claims a year. — Ben Kesling, WSJ, "‘A Black Eye’ for the Purple Heart, as Groups Feud Over Funding," 13 June 2019Recent Examples on the Web: Verb
Musicians, actors, engineers, rocket scientists and furloughed employees have worked for them, too. — Deborah Storey | For Al.com, al.com, "Food delivery craze drives GrubSouth," 17 July 2019 Rivian also seized on the misfortune of the sputtering Faraday Future, hiring at least 34 employees after the EV startup furloughed and laid off hundreds of workers in late 2018. — Sean O'kane, The Verge, "EV startup Rivian has poached dozens from Ford, McLaren, Tesla, and Faraday Future," 2 July 2019 Mattis said Friday that about half of them would be furloughed. — Dan Lamothe, Washington Post, "Amid government shutdown, the military becomes major front in political battle," 20 Jan. 2018 Mattis said Friday that about half of them would be furloughed. — Author: Dan Lamothe, Anchorage Daily News, "Amid government shutdown, military becomes major front in political battle," 20 Jan. 2018 The Department of Health and Human Services issued a memo that would furlough 50 percent of its staff and cut back certain services, such as Indian Health Services and child welfare programs. — Dartunorro Clark, NBC News, "Government shutdown 2018: What’s open and what’s closed?," 20 Jan. 2018 The stopgap deal promises relief for about 800,000 federal workers, who have been furloughed or working without pay. — Ezequiel Minaya, WSJ, "Companies Fear Uncertainty Even as Government Reopens," 28 Jan. 2019 One affiliated program, D.C.'s Capital Area Food Bank, is particularly in need of assistance, given the number of federal employees furloughed in our country's capital. — Chloe Foussianes, Town & Country, "How to Help Federal Workers During the Government Shutdown," 25 Jan. 2019 On Friday, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis estimated that the shutdown would furlough roughly 50 percent of his civilian work force. — Linda Qiu, New York Times, "Trump Overstates Government Shutdown’s Effect on the Military," 19 Jan. 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'furlough.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for furlough
furlough
noun
English Language Learners Definition of furlough
(Entry 1 of 2)
: a period of time when a soldier is allowed to leave the place where he or she is stationed
US
: a period of time when an employee is told not to come to work and is not paid
US
: a period of time when a prisoner is allowed to leave prison
furlough
verbEnglish Language Learners Definition of furlough (Entry 2 of 2)
: to grant a furlough to (someone)
US
: to put (a worker) on furlough
See the full definition for furlough in the English Language Learners Dictionary
furlough
noun
fur·lough
| \ ˈfər-lō
\
\
Kids Definition of furlough
: a leave of absence from duty