Female assumes restraint, taking male on holiday (4,4)
I believe the answer is:
half term
'holiday' is the definition.
(I know that half-term is a type of holiday)
'female assumes restraint taking male' is the wordplay.
'female' becomes 'f' (abbreviation).
'assumes restraint' becomes 'halter' (I can't justify this - if you can you should believe this answer much more).
'taking' means one lot of letters goes inside another.
'male' becomes 'm' (common abbreviation).
'f' inserted inside 'halter' is 'halfter'.
'halfter'+'m'='HALF-TERM'
'on' is the link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for half term that I've seen before include "Short holiday during school semester" , "Short school vacation" , "Break during division of school year" , "Short school break" , "twenty-weeks pregnant?" .)