avocation

noun

Etymology: From Latin āvocātiō (“a distraction”), from āvocō (“to call off, distract”).

1. A calling away; a diversion.

   “But though she could neither sleep nor rest in her bed, yet, having no avocation from it, she was found there by her father at his return from Allworthy's, which was not till past ten o'clock in the morning.”

2. A hobby or recreational or leisure pursuit.

   “But yield who will to their separation, My object in living is to unite My avocation and my vocation As my two eyes make one in sight.”

   “Gardening is a wholesome avocation that encourages appreciation for nature and concern for the preservation and enhancement of our environment.”

3. That which calls one away from one's regular employment or vocation.
4. Pursuits; duties; affairs which occupy one's time; usual employment; vocation.

   “I have several things on the anvil, and near finished, that perhaps might be useful, if published: but the continual avocation by business, the impositions on me by impertinent visits, and the uneasiness of writing, which grows more intolerable to me every day, I doubt, will prevent my going any farther.”

   “[W]hen his other more momentous Avocations of Pedantry and Pedagogiſm vvill give him an Interval from VVrath and Contention, he vvill ſet apart a Moment to conſider humane Nature Deviliz'd, and give us a Mathematical Anatomical Deſcription of it; […]”

5. The calling of a case from an inferior to a superior court.