PTO

5 synonyms for PTO, grouped by meaning and by how common each one is.

Noun — Paid time off: leave from work that an employer still pays for, often held as a single pooled allowance covering holiday, sick days and personal days.

Synonyms

Rare, literary or technical

Precise, but they will stand out — check the sense before using one.

paid leave annual leave holiday entitlement vacation days PTA

Synonyms by Meaning

1. noun

Paid time off: leave from work that an employer still pays for, often held as a single pooled allowance covering holiday, sick days and personal days.

“I've got six days of PTO left before the year ends.”

paid leave annual leave holiday entitlement vacation days

2. noun

Parent-teacher organisation: a voluntary body of parents and staff that supports a school, chiefly through fundraising and events.

“The PTO raised enough for a new set of library books.”

PTA

How to use PTO

The word patterns that sound natural to a native speaker.

accrue PTO request PTO unlimited PTO PTO balance PTO policy PTO shaft

The paid-time-off sense is standard American workplace English; British employers say annual leave or holiday. 'Please turn over' is chiefly British and now old-fashioned.

Etymology

An initialism, standing variously for paid time off, power take-off, parent-teacher organisation or please turn over.

Full origin of PTO →

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between PTO and vacation days?

Traditional systems give separate buckets — so many vacation days, so many sick days, so many personal days. PTO merges them into one pool you draw on for any reason, which gives more flexibility but means a bout of flu eats into the same allowance as your holiday.

What is unlimited PTO?

Unlimited PTO removes the fixed allowance and lets employees take leave as needed with manager approval. Studies repeatedly find people take less time off under it, partly because there is no accrued balance to lose and no clear norm for how much is acceptable.

What is the difference between a PTO and a PTA?

Both are parent-and-school groups. A PTA is affiliated to a national parent-teacher association with dues and shared rules, while a PTO is an independent organisation set up by a single school, free to run its own way and keep all the money it raises.

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