recess

[ ri-ses, ree-ses ]

/ rɪˈsɛs, ˈri sɛs /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for: recess / recessed / recesses on Thesaurus.com

noun

temporary withdrawal or cessation from the usual work or activity.

a period of such withdrawal.

a receding part or space, as a bay or alcove in a room.

an indentation in a line or extent of coast, hills, forest, etc.

recesses, a secluded or inner area or part: in the recesses of the palace.

verb (used with object)

to place or set in a recess.

to set or form as or like a recess; make a recess or recesses in: to recess a wall.

to suspend or defer for a recess: to recess the Senate.

verb (used without object)

to take a recess.

OTHER WORDS FOR recess

1 respite, rest, break, vacation.

See synonyms for recess on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of recess

1510–20; <Latin recessus a withdrawal, receding part, equivalent to recēd(ere) to recede¹ + -tus suffix of v. action, with dt>ss

OTHER WORDS FROM recess

non·re·cess, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use recess in a sentence

Fortunately, there was another word for quick that popped from the recesses of his memory.
You Can Look It Up: The Wikipedia Story|Walter Isaacson|October 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Pictures of pets, pictures of relatives in coffins, pictures of intimate moments otherwise discarded in the recesses of memory.
These Photographs Would Die Without Him|Dale Eisinger|July 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Welcome to MorbidReality, one of the darkest recesses of humanity featuring some of the most disturbing content on the Internet.
Welcome to MorbidReality, A Subreddit Featuring Some of the Most Disturbing Content on the Internet|Gideon Resnick|February 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In the recesses of Concordia you will feel really, really small.
It’s a Big, Big World: Sights That Make You Feel Small|Lonely Planet|December 24, 2013|DAILY BEAST

The answer to that question is known only in the deep recesses of the mind of the killer.
Colorado Shooting Suspect James Holmes’s Life in Aurora|Christine Pelisek, Eliza Shapiro|July 23, 2012|DAILY BEAST
It was then just after seven o'clock, and the October evening was drawing in with chill airs from the recesses of the forest.
Three More John Silence Stories|Algernon Blackwood
Their deeper recesses were given up to owls and bats, and nearer the entrance the prowling fox or jackal found a covert.
The Catacombs of Rome|William Henry Withrow
In their dark recesses were concocted those treasons, stratagems, and spoils that desolated the land.
The Catacombs of Rome|William Henry Withrow
In one of these dark recesses the wall was pierced, well up toward the Carey street end.
Famous Adventures And Prison Escapes of the Civil War|Various
Shadow after shadow crept down the walls of the chasm, blurred its projections, darkened its faces, and crowded its recesses.
Overland|John William De Forest

British Dictionary definitions for recess

recess

noun (rɪˈsɛs, ˈriːsɛs)

a space, such as a niche or alcove, set back or indented

(often plural) a secluded or secret placerecesses of the mind

a cessation of business, such as the closure of Parliament during a vacation

anatomy a small cavity or depression in a bodily organ, part, or structure

US and Canadian a break between classes at a school

verb (rɪˈsɛs)

(tr) to place or set (something) in a recess

(tr) to build a recess or recesses in (a wall, building, etc)

Word Origin for recess

C16: from Latin recessus a retreat, from recēdere to recede

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

recess

OTHER WORDS FOR recess

Origin of recess

OTHER WORDS FROM recess

Words related to recess

How to use recess in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for recess

Word Origin for recess