Recessions

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A significant decline in economic activity that lasts for an extended period, often leading to increased unemployment and reduced investment
2. Periods when overall economic growth slows down markedly, causing fewer jobs and less spending
3. Times marked by falling production and consumption across an economy, often bringing layoffs and lower incomes

Etymology: "Recessions" is the plural of "recession," so the core history belongs to the singular. The noun comes from Latin "recessio," a retreat or withdrawal, built from "recedere," meaning to go back or retreat, which itself combines "re-" (back) with "cedere" (to go). The sense of a physical withdrawal, a going back from a position, is the original one, and the economic meaning is a later extension of it. The modern economic sense grows naturally from that retreat idea: a recession is a pulling back of economic activity, a shrinking rather than a stopping. The English word is a borrowing from Latin, not something that came through French, which is why it looks so much like "recess" with a noun ending attached. Readers who know "recess" as a school break or a niche in a wall are seeing the same Latin root at work, though the two English words took different paths.

Synonyms: declines, downturns, slumps

Antonyms: booms, expansions