Word of the Day: Recession

recession re-ces-sion / rĭ-sĕsh-ən noun 1. a period of economic decline characterized by high unemployment and low production It’s a recession when your neighbor loses his job; it’s a depression when you lose your own. Harry S. Truman, 1884 – 1972   2. the act of moving back or away from a point The recession of the polar ice has opened up the northern sea route, which is also known as the Northeast Passage, over the past several years.  Whit Richardson, “As polar ice recedes, Maine could become a logistical hub for North America, says president of Iceland”, ‘Bangor Daily News’, May 31, 2013   3. an exiting procession, such as at the end of a church service Please remain quietly in your pew during the recession of the clergy.  “Sunday Morning Order of Worship”, First United Methodist Church of Birmingham, February 3, 2013   4. a portion of a building, wall or other such structure that is set back or recedes The recession of the wall plane which provides the porch space is created by projecting polygonal or cylindrical bays, located at the center, and east and west ends of the building.  Ellen J. Uguccioni, National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination Form, www.mostateparks.com/sites/mostateparks/files/Row House Bldgs BI.pdf, October 12, 1984   5. the act of legally granting back property to a former owner PRELIMINARY and Secret Treaty between the French Republick and his C. M. the King of Spain, relating to the aggrandizement of H. R. H. the Infant Duke of Parma in Italy, and to the recession of Louisiana. Signed October 1, 1800, “Treaties, Conventions, International Protocols and Agreements Between the United States of America and Other Powers”, Compiled by William M. Malloy Under Resolution of the Senate of January 18, 1909   etymology From the Latin feminine noun recessio, recessionis (withdrawal, retreat) derived ultimately from a combination of the Latin adverbial prefix re- (back, again), the Latin verb cedo, cedere, cessi, cessum (yield, withdraw, depart), and the Latin abstract-noun-forming suffix -tio, tionis indicating the action of a verb. Thank you to Allen Ward for providing this etymology.