‘Holliday’ or ‘Holiday’: How to Spell ‘Holiday’ Correctly

Do you spell it ‘holliday’ or ‘holiday’? We’ll cover the correct spelling below and teach you how to use it in a sentence correctly. We’ll also define it so that you can better understand the term and feel more comfortable using it in the future.

The short answer is:

• The correct spelling is ‘holiday.’
• It’s never correct to spell it ‘holliday.’ That word doesn’t exist in the English language.

‘Holiday’ – Correct Spelling

As you’ve just learned, the correct spelling of the word is ‘holiday.’ You’d never spell it ‘holliday’ because that isn’t a recognized word in the English language.

Holiday or Holliday

A lot of words in the English language have double letters back-to-back, such as:

• hippopotamus
• food

But ‘holiday’ is not one of those words.

Let’s quickly define the word and then talk about how to use it in its plural form and in a sentence.

Definition of 'Holiday': What does 'Holiday' Mean? 

The Merriam-Webster definition of the word ‘holiday’ is:

• “holy day,” a day on which one is exempt from work
• vacation
• a period of exemption or relief

It’s also defined as:

• to take or spend a vacation or holiday, especially in travel or at a resort: vacation

Some synonyms of the word include:

• Break
• Recess
• Leave
• Vacation
• Hols (British)

Plural of 'Holiday'

When learning English, it’s important to learn how to use words in both their singular and plural versions.

• The plural version of the word is ‘holidays.’

That’s because it follows the standard rule for pluralization, which requires that you add an ‘s’ or ‘es’ to the end of a word to make it plural.

How to Use 'Holiday' in a Sentence

Now that we’ve defined the word and you know the correct spelling, let’s see how you’d use it in a sentence correctly.

Take a look at a few examples:

• You’re really not coming home this holiday?
• I love having holiday breaks from work.
• We have to fill out a form to donate to Toys for Tots this holiday season.
• I love the holiday season and all the beautiful lights and decorations everywhere.

Here’s how you’d use the plural form of the word:

• We have to make a decision about what we’re doing for the holidays.
• After the holidays, I’ll officially be a master’s student at NYU.
• We’re going to a cabin in the forest for the holidays this year.
• The holidays are going to be amazing this year; we're going to Paris!

Closing Thoughts on ‘Holiday’ and ‘Holliday’

As you learned:

• The correct way to spell the word is ‘holiday’ and not ‘holliday,’ which isn’t a recognized word in the English language.

When using it in a sentence, remember that it only has one ‘L’ in it. You can also try to remember that it means “holy day” and that there’s only one ‘L’ in that phrase.

But if you ever get stuck, pop on back over here to browse our library of articles dedicated to explaining confusing words and phrases. It’ll help refresh your memory and boost confidence when using it in everyday language.