recession
Meaning
a period of temporary economic decline during which trade and industrial activity are reduced, generally identified by a fall in gdp in two successive quarters.
the action of receding; movement back from a previous position.
Structure
Usage
the country entered a deep recession following the financial crisis.
the slow recession of the glacier left behind a transformed landscape.
economists are debating whether the current slowdown will turn into a full-blown recession.
Etymology
the word 'recession' originates from the latin verb 'recedere', meaning 'to go back, withdraw', which is itself composed of the prefix 're-' ('back') and 'cedere' ('to go'). this literal sense of moving backward was adopted into english, initially describing physical withdrawal, such as the receding of floodwaters. in economics, the term was metaphorically extended in the early 20th century to describe a period where economic activity 'goes back' or contracts from a previous state of growth, capturing the notion of a backward movement in prosperity.
Analysis
re- (latin prefix, meaning 'back' or 'again'), -cess- (from latin 'cedere' meaning 'to go, to yield'), -ion (latin suffix forming nouns of action or state).