sojourn

American  

[soh-jurn, soh-jurn, soh-jurn] / ˈsoʊ dʒɜrn, ˈsoʊ dʒɜrn, soʊˈdʒɜrn /

noun

1. a temporary stay.

   during his sojourn in Paris.

---

verb (used without object)

1. to stay for a time in a place; live temporarily.

   to sojourn on the Riviera for two months.

   Synonyms:

   stop, rest, vacation, visit

sojourn British  

/ ˈsʌdʒ-, ˈsɒdʒɜːn /

noun

1. a temporary stay

---

verb

1. (intr) to stay or reside temporarily

Other Word Forms

• sojourner noun

Etymology

Origin of sojourn

First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English verb sojurnen, Old French sojorner “to rest, stay,” from unattested Vulgar Latin subdiurnāre “to stay for a time,” a compound of the preposition and prefix sub, sub-, here meaning “a little, for a while” and the Latin verb diurnāre “to live for a long time,” a derivative of the Latin adjective diurnus “belonging to the daytime, occurring every day”; noun derivative of the verb; journey

Example Sentences

A large, gestural 1972 painting attested to a road not taken, while records of his sojourns in Europe and Africa revealed the influence of architecture on abstract structure.

From The Wall Street Journal

Abu Warda gunned the tractor’s engine, pushing it faster as he passed the shell of a seaside cafe where his family once stopped for tea and grilled chicken on weekend sojourns.

From Los Angeles Times

Following his sojourn in Europe and a brief stint back stateside, he won another fellowship to study in Mexico, where he absorbed the lessons of the activist muralists there.

From The Wall Street Journal

Or to honesty, as a rule, though he insists that this account of his disastrous Venetian sojourn is genuine.

From The Wall Street Journal

A striking cremello horse stood out from the rest — a beloved subject for photographers who sojourn here.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• layover
• stopover