stagnation
Americannoun
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the state or condition of stagnating, or having stopped, as by ceasing to run or flow.
Meteorologists forecast ozone and air stagnation.
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a foulness or staleness, as one emanating from a standing pool of water.
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a failure to develop, progress, or advance.
periods of economic stagnation followed by bursts of growth.
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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)
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President Trump's First State of The Union Address (2018)
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myPerspectives 9.3
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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.
“A meaningful decline in payrolls or a shrinking labor force would be early signs that labor market stagnation is giving way to broader weakness,” the head of market and economic research said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026
After several years of stagnation, hopes had been high the eurozone's traditional growth engine would rebound this year thanks to a spending blitz unleashed by Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
From Barron's ● Sep. 3, 2026
Despite the project’s stagnation, she continues to convey optimism.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026
While it's difficult to prove precise links, she says - for example- a sense of stagnation and dwindling infrastructure can make communities feel that the political system, "is not working for people like them."
From BBC ● Jun. 29, 2026
The newly reenergized suffrage movement finally started having some success after a long period of stagnation.
From "Votes for Women!" by Winifred Conkling
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.
