stagnation
Americannoun
-
the state or condition of stagnating, or having stopped, as by ceasing to run or flow.
Meteorologists forecast ozone and air stagnation.
-
a foulness or staleness, as one emanating from a standing pool of water.
-
a failure to develop, progress, or advance.
periods of economic stagnation followed by bursts of growth.
-
the state or quality of being or feeling sluggish and dull.
Happily, they have been able to avoid stagnation in their ten-year marriage.
Etymology
Origin of stagnation
Explanation
Stagnation is the state of being still, or not moving, like a sitting puddle of water where stagnation attracts mosquitoes. The root of stagnation is the Latin word for "standing water," stagnatum. The stagnation of water can be a serious problem in parts of the world where mosquitoes spread diseases like malaria, or where there is a shortage of drinkable water. There are also other kinds of stagnation, or inactivity — like a struggling country's economic stagnation or a writer's mental stagnation that results in writer's block.
Vocabulary lists containing stagnation
"Letter from Birmingham Jail" by Martin Luther King, Jr. (1963)
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
President Trump's First State of The Union Address (2018)
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
myPerspectives 9.3
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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 Dream started to decline some 50 years ago, beginning in the 1970s, with globalisation and wage stagnation, according to Mark Rank, co-author of Chasing the American Dream: Understanding What Shapes Our Fortunes.
From BBC • Jul. 2, 2026
Wage stagnation and the effects of the Great Recession are among the reasons cited by the researchers.
From Science Daily • Jun. 14, 2026
"The Russian economy is entering a stagnation, with high interest rates and high inflationary pressure," Alexander Kolyandr, a London-based Russian economy expert, told AFP on the eve of Putin's speech.
From Barron's • Jun. 5, 2026
But President Nixon’s resignation, economic stagnation and the Vietnam War had caused Americans’ faith in government to waver.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 22, 2026
Yet, once those ideas were challenged, progress was breathtakingly rapid—after fifteen centuries of stagnation, there have been fewer than another five centuries from the time of Copernicus to the present day.
From "The Scientists" by John Gribbin
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.
