Liberal Dictionary English Dictionary
noun
- Military. a vacation or leave of absence granted to an enlisted person.
- a usually temporary layoff from work: Many plant workers have been forced to go on furlough.
- a temporary leave of absence authorized for a prisoner from a penitentiary.
verb (used with object)
- to grant a furlough to.
- to lay (an employee or worker) off from work, usually temporarily.
noun
- leave of absence from military duty
- US a temporary laying-off of employees, usually because there is insufficient work to occupy them
verb (tr)
- to grant a furlough to
- US to lay off (staff) temporarily
1620s, vorloffe, from Dutch verlof, literally “permission,” from Middle Dutch ver- “completely, for” + laf, lof “permission,” which is related to the second element in believe and to leave (n.).
The -gh spelling developed by 1770s and represents an “f” that was once pronounced at the end of the word but disappeared fairly soon thereafter in English.
1783, from furlough (n.). Related: Furloughed; furloughing.