recession

¹ American  

[ri-sesh-uhn] / rɪˈsɛʃ ən /

noun

1. the act of receding or withdrawing.

2. a receding part of a wall, building, etc.

3. a withdrawing procession, as at the end of a religious service.

4. Economics. a period of an economic contraction, sometimes limited in scope or duration.

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recession ² American  

[ree-sesh-uhn] / riˈsɛʃ ən /

noun

1. a return of ownership to a former possessor.

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recession ¹ British  

/ riːˈsɛʃən /

noun

1. the act of restoring possession to a former owner

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recession ² British  

/ rɪˈsɛʃən /

noun

1. a temporary depression in economic activity or prosperity

2. the withdrawal of the clergy and choir in procession from the chancel at the conclusion of a church service

3. the act of receding

4. a part of a building, wall, etc, that recedes

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recession Cultural  

1. A general business slump, less severe than a depression.

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Etymology

Origin of recession¹

First recorded in 1640–50, recession is from the Latin word recessiōn- (stem of recessiō ). See recess, -ion

Origin of recession²

First recorded in 1885–90; re- + cession

Explanation

Jobs being cut? Houses not selling? Everyone talking about the poor sales of everything from cars to bouquets of flowers? That's a recession, a time of economic decline. Recession comes from the Latin word recessus, meaning "a going back, retreat." Think of all the things that get made and sold in a country. When fewer people buy things, orders for them slow down. The sales "go back" to a lower amount. This is an economic recession. This noun can also describe other kinds of "going back," like the recession of floodwaters that enable people to begin cleaning up their homes that had been filled with water.

Example Sentences

But prior tightening, a credit crunch and poorly timed fiscal moves turned a temporary disruption into a recession.

From MarketWatch • May 22, 2026

“That could put stress in the system and easily it could cause a recession type thing,” Dimon said, adding that a recession was “a very possible scenario.”

From Barron's • May 21, 2026

America was in a post-Nixon, post-Vietnam War recession.

From Los Angeles Times • May 19, 2026

“General recession fears should hit industrials, financials, and real estate. Once again, consumer services, media and energy are the more resilient sectors according to our analysis.”

From MarketWatch • May 18, 2026

The most obvious explanation of the red shift was in terms of the Doppler effect: the galaxies were receding from us; the more distant the galaxy the greater its speed of recession.

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan

Related Words

• bankruptcy
• collapse
• decline
• deflation
• downturn
• hard times
• inflation
• shakeout
• slide
• slump
• stagnation
• unemployment