fur·lough
ˈfər-(ˌ)lō 
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
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
Paul B. Brown3
: 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
Richard Willing
furloughed; furloughing; furloughs
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
George HopkinsAlthough 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
Jerry BelcherSynonyms
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 months
Verb
The company will consider furloughing a small number of workers.
Recent Examples on the Web
Elaine Mallon, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 12 Oct. 2024
Boeing fuselage maker Spirit AeroSystems earlier this week put about 700 Wichita, Kansas, workers on a 21-day furlough.
—Leslie Josephs, CNBC, 31 Oct. 2024
Chris Morris, Fortune, 23 Oct. 2024
In May 2023, a worker was badly injured in a fall, and in August the lab furloughed most staff for 5 days because of a budget problem.
—Byadrian Cho, science.org, 4 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for furlough 
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Noun
Boeing said the strike is costing the company nearly a billion dollars a month and led the company to start one-week furlough for employees.
—Elaine Mallon, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 12 Oct. 2024
Boeing fuselage maker Spirit AeroSystems earlier this week put about 700 Wichita, Kansas, workers on a 21-day furlough.
—Leslie Josephs, CNBC, 31 Oct. 2024
Verb
Spirit has already cut dozens of routes during the upcoming holiday period and furloughed 186 pilots, as well as offered incentives to customers, such as launching a business-class option and blocking off the middle seat.
—Chris Morris, Fortune, 23 Oct. 2024
In May 2023, a worker was badly injured in a fall, and in August the lab furloughed most staff for 5 days because of a budget problem.
—Byadrian Cho, science.org, 4 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for furlough
Dictionary Entries Near furlough
Cite this Entry
“Furlough.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/furlough. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
furlough
1 of 2 noun
fur·lough
ˈfər-lō
: a leave of absence from duty granted especially to a soldier
furlough
2 of 2 verb1
: to grant a furlough to
2
: to lay off from work
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