recency
Americannoun
-
the fact of being recent, of having occurred a relatively short time ago; closeness of a past event to a later past time or to the present.
The general nervousness during that period was mostly due to the recency of the great stock market crash.
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the fact of being more recent than something else and therefore more salient or memorable (often used attributively).
The data might be showing recency effects—that is, choices presented later were more likely to be selected by participants.
Etymology
Origin of recency
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The glow of a World Series appearance — also known as recency bias — enhances value.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2026
A big reason to keep a brag book is to guard against recency bias.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 29, 2026
There is no easy antidote to recency bias.
From MarketWatch ● Jan. 14, 2026
Over 120 of these studies were given priority based on sample size, recency, relevance and the range of health conditions they addressed.
From Science Daily ● Dec. 12, 2025
What particular word shall be recalled depends on the frequency, recency and intensity of past linkage.
From Psychology A Study Of Mental Life by Woodworth, Robert S.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.