Definition of "furlough" []

• A leave of absence or vacation, especially one granted to a member of the armed forces. (noun)
• A usually temporary layoff from work. (noun)
• A leave of absence from prison granted to a prisoner. (noun)
• The papers or documents authorizing a leave: The soldiers had their furloughs in their breast pockets. (noun)
• To grant a leave to. (verb-transitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "It`s just so strange, that the government forgets to add those "without pay" words after they use the word furlough though, isn`t it?"
• "Once, the term furlough conjured an image of a sailor on the town or a model prisoner rewarded with a visit home."
• "A furlough is no kind of solution to the problems that Maryland and other cash-strapped states are facing."