as in dismissal
the termination of the employment of an employee or a work force often temporarily
the landscaping company usually has to put most of its personnel on furlough during the extremely slow winter months
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in to excess
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
2
as in to bum
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of furlough
Meg Kinnard, Chicago Tribune, 31 Jan. 2026
That standoff stretched for 35 days, leading to the furlough of more than 350,000 federal workers and forcing 400,000 others to work without pay.
—Marina Johnson, Louisville Courier Journal, 29 Jan. 2026
Terry Moseley, USA Today, 22 Oct. 2025
About 750,000 employees will be sent to furlough each day, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
—Sarah Moreno, Miami Herald, 3 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for furlough
Noun
But the memo said that 18,946 of the department’s 27,206 direct hire American employees are exempted from potential furloughs if the shutdown continues.
—Meg Kinnard, Chicago Tribune, 31 Jan. 2026
That standoff stretched for 35 days, leading to the furlough of more than 350,000 federal workers and forcing 400,000 others to work without pay.
—Marina Johnson, Louisville Courier Journal, 29 Jan. 2026
Verb
The Social Security Administration will continue to issue retirement and disability benefits but will furlough 12% of its staff and pause marketing campaigns, according to the agency’s shutdown plan.
—Terry Moseley, USA Today, 22 Oct. 2025
About 750,000 employees will be sent to furlough each day, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
—Sarah Moreno, Miami Herald, 3 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for furlough
Recent Examples of Synonyms for furlough
Noun
-
The Supreme Court is sending the case back to the lower court for dismissal.—
Melissa Repko,Sara Salinas,
CNBC,
20 Feb. 2026
-
The Justice Department has appealed the dismissal of those prosecutions.—
JESSICA HILL THE ASSOCIATED PRESS,
Arkansas Online,
19 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Over the past few months my wife has begun drinking to excess every evening.—
Amy Dickinson,
Anchorage Daily News,
17 July 2023
-
Over the past few months, my wife has begun drinking to excess every evening.—
Amy Dickinson,
Washington Post,
17 July 2023
Verb
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Then Jason and Thor shower together, each lathering the other’s back and bums up with fewer orgasms than an old Herbal Essences commercial.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
4 Feb. 2026
-
Rittenhouse admits to initially being bummed out to not be the murderer, only to quickly come around to preferring this outcome.—
Derek Lawrence,
HollywoodReporter,
12 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
The correct route onto the island, which is home to an MoD firing range, is via a barrier by QinetiQ’s security office.—
Lianne Kolirin,
CNN Money,
16 Feb. 2026
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For Bill Self and others who follow Big 12 basketball, a rather quiet Sunday night was interrupted with the news of Jerome Tang’s firing as men’s basketball coach at Kansas State.—
Gary Bedore,
Kansas City Star,
16 Feb. 2026
Verb
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But what Flanagan’s campaign promotions about her board experience omit are the votes to slash budgets, lay off teachers, and close entire schools as the district struggled with declining enrollments, as well as costly scandals and a new headquarters that ballooned in cost to more than $40 million.—
Ramsey Touchberry,
The Washington Examiner,
19 Jan. 2026
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They are forced to take out high-interest loans, drain reserves, lay off staff or cut services, all while continuing to perform work they are contracted to deliver.—
Kristin Brown,
New York Daily News,
9 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The entire day felt dehumanizing, as if her nearly eight years with the company, her medical problems and her physical pain had been reduced to nothing more than malingering and scattered incidents of tardiness.—
Greg Jaffe,
Anchorage Daily News,
18 June 2023
-
Goldstein, who did not return a message seeking comment, practices in Chicago and has lectured on the topic of malingering, according to a resume posted online.—
Matt Hamilton,
Los Angeles Times,
12 June 2023
Noun
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Outside Washington, the classical music industry suffers the usual ups and downs, shocks and bumps, with layoffs at the Metropolitan Opera in New York and a reduced season ahead.—
Philip Kennicott,
Washington Post,
20 Feb. 2026
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But the changes have fallen short of triggering mass layoffs.—
Jake Angelo,
Fortune,
19 Feb. 2026
Verb
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In recent weeks, Baker McKenzie, a white-shoe law firm, axed 700 employees, Salesforce sacked hundreds of workers, and the auditing firm KPMG negotiated lower fees with its own auditor.—
Annie Lowrey,
The Atlantic,
18 Feb. 2026
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Films have been censored, and theater plays axed.—
Andy Browne,
semafor.com,
16 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Furlough.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/furlough. Accessed 22 Feb. 2026.
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