sick leave

noun

1

: an absence from work permitted because of illness

2

: the number of days per year for which an employer agrees to pay employees who are sick

Examples of sick leave in a Sentence

employee benefits such as vacation time and sick leave

We are allotted three weeks annual sick leave.

He's been on sick leave since last Thursday.

Recent Examples on the Web

But Missouri voters could get a second chance at mandating paid sick leave. —Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 11 July 2025

As well as in Missouri, voters in Nebraska and Alaska approved paid sick leave measures in November last year. —Khaleda Rahman, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 July 2025

Silver Flight Attendants are owed wages, deferred moving expenses, vacation, sick leave, and medical bills. —David Lyons, Sun Sentinel, 21 June 2025

Tesla has also been accused of violating labor laws by denying overtime pay, paid sick leave and offering meal or rest breaks as well as preventing workers from unionizing. —Karoline Leonard, Austin American Statesman, 8 July 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1820, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for sick leave

• achieve
• believe
• conceive
• deceive
• naive
• perceive
• receive
• relieve
• reprieve
• retrieve
• breve
• cleave

Medical Definition

sick leave

noun

1

: an absence from work permitted because of illness

2

: the number of days per year for which an employer agrees to pay employees who are sick