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

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

Tit-for-tat thinking can lead employees to view sick leave as taking turns. —Lieke Ten Brummelhuis, Forbes, 23 Jan. 2025

Look at your vacation time, sick leave and flexible work policies through the lens of someone undergoing fertility treatment. —Cynthia McEwen, Forbes.com, 13 May 2025

Democrats had been filibustering legislation to roll back the ballot measure’s sick leave protections during on-and-off debate this spring. —Jonathan Shorman, Kansas City Star, 15 May 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