maternity leave
Plural
maternity leaves
1
a period of time when a woman can take a break from working and stay home before and after the birth of her child
- She went on maternity leave a month before her baby was due.
- The company's maternity leave policy provides twelve weeks of paid time off for new mothers.
- He took paternity leave to support his partner during her maternity leave.
- After her maternity leave, she plans to return to work part-time initially.
- Maternity leave allowed her to bond with her newborn without worrying about work responsibilities.