vacaciones
/bakaˈθjones/feminine, plural
In Spanish, the word for holiday is vacaciones. Wiktionary also lists vacación.
Meaning: period of one or more days taken off work for leisure and often travel (noun)
Ways to say it
| Spanish | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| vacaciones | /bakaˈθjones/ /bakaˈsjones/ |
feminine, plural |
| vacación | /bakaˈθjon/ /bakaˈsjon/ |
feminine |
Vacaciones is the most general and commonly used word for holiday in Spanish. If you want to say you are currently on holiday, use the idiomatic phrase de vacaciones.
Which one should you use?
The term vacaciones refers to your personal time off. If you are talking about a public holiday or a bank holiday, you should instead use the adjective festivo or the phrase día festivo.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The word is almost always used in its plural form, las vacaciones, when referring to a period of time off.
How do you pronounce it?
/bakaˈθjones/
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often use the singular vacación, but in Spanish, the plural vacaciones is the standard way to refer to a vacation period.
Did you know?
- In many Spanish-speaking countries, the term 'puente', literally meaning 'bridge', is used to describe a long weekend created when a 'festivo' falls near a weekend.
- The word vacaciones comes from the Latin vacātiōnem, which originally meant 'emptiness' or 'being free'. This is why it shares a root with the English word 'vacant'.
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, the vacaciones period in August is so significant that some small towns or businesses may close entirely for several weeks.
Examples in context
- Ten unas buenas vacaciones.Have a nice holiday.This sentence is useful for wishing someone a nice time using vacaciones.Tatoeba #1191436 by marcelostockle, translation #273948 by CK
- Estoy de vacaciones en la playa.I'm at the beach on holiday.This sentence shows how to use the phrase de vacaciones to say you are on holiday.Tatoeba #1281626 by Shishir, translation #1229073 by CK
- No me voy a España de vacaciones.I'm not going to Spain on holiday.This sentence demonstrates the use of vacaciones when talking about travel plans.Tatoeba #10021374 by manufrutos, translation #7776976 by shekitten
- Disfruté de mis vacaciones en la playaI enjoyed my holiday at the beach
- El empleado se tomó un día de descansoThe employee took a day off
- Solicité permiso para tomar mis vacaciones en abrilI requested permission to take my holiday in April
- ¡Ya tengo planeadas mis vacaciones de verano!I already have my summer holidays planned!
- Voy a tomarme un descanso en la playaI'm going to take a break at the beach
- ¡Por fin es viernes! ¡Mañana tengo día libre!Finally, it's Friday! I have a day off tomorrow!
- Mañana es feriado, ¡no tengo que trabajar!Tomorrow is a holiday, I don't have to work!
- Tomaremos nuestras vacaciones en el mes de diciembreWe will take our holiday in December
- ¡Estos días de descanso han sido increíbles!These days off have been amazing!
- El lunes es feriado en México, así que no hay trabajoMonday is a holiday in Mexico, so there's no work
- 47 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Daniel and Lucía are talking about their upcoming plans at a cafe.
- Daniel¿Ya tienes tus vacaciones de este año?Do you already have your holidays for this year?
- LucíaSí, me voy a Italia en julio.Yes, I am going to Italy in July.
- Daniel¡Qué bien! Lucía, disfruta mucho de tus vacaciones.That's great! Lucía, enjoy your holidays a lot.
- LucíaMuchas gracias, Daniel.Thank you very much, Daniel.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “holiday” translations and entries vacaciones, vacación, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries vacación, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
