recess

== English == === Etymology === The noun is borrowed from Latin recessus (“act of going back, departure, receding, retiring; (figuratively) retreat, withdrawal; (metonymically) distant, secluded, or secret spot, corner, nook, retreat; recessed part, indentation”) (also Late Latin recessus (“decree or resolution of the Diet of the Holy Roman Empire”)), from recēdō (“to go back, recede, retire, withdraw; to go away, depart; (by extension) to disappear, vanish; to separate; to stand back, be distant; to yield”) (from re- (prefix meaning ‘back, backwards’) + cēdō (“to go, move, proceed”)) + -tus (suffix forming action nouns from verbs); influenced by Middle French recès, French recès (“a break, pause; break between classes in school; school vacation; ebbing of tide; reduction”) (also Anglo-Norman recès and Old French recès (“hiding place; hollow”). Noun sense 5 (“decree or resolution of the diet of the Holy Roman Empire, etc.”) is possibly influenced by Italian recesso and refers to a decree or resolution made just before a meeting ends. The adjective and verb are derived from the noun. === Pronunciation === (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ɹɪˈsɛs/, /ˈɹiːsɛs/ (General American) IPA(key): /ˈɹiˌsɛs/, /ɹəˈsɛs/, /ɹiˈsɛs/ Rhymes: -ɛs Hyphenation: re‧cess === Noun === recess (countable and uncountable, plural recesses) (countable) A depressed, hollow, or indented space; also, a hole or opening. Hyponyms: piriform recess, sphenoethmoidal recess (architecture) A small space created by building part of a wall further back from the rest; a niche. Synonyms: alcove, indentation (criminal slang, usually in the plural) The place in a prison where the communal lavatories are located. (countable) A hidden, innermost, or inaccessible place or part of a place. (archaic) A place of retirement, retreat, or seclusion. (figuratively, usually in the plural) An obscure, remote, or secret situation. (countable) A temporary stoppage of an activity; a break, a pause. Synonyms: day off, hiatus, moratorium; see also Thesaurus:pause, Thesaurus:vacation (government) A period of time when the proceedings of a committee, court of law, parliament, or other official body are temporarily suspended. (Australia, UK, Canada, US, Philippines, education) A time away from studying during the school day for a meal or recreation. Synonyms: break, (Britain) playtime (countable, archaic) An act of retiring or withdrawing; a moving back. Synonyms: recession, retreat (countable, historical) A decree or resolution of the diet of the Holy Roman Empire or the Hanseatic League. (obsolete) (countable) An act of retiring or withdrawing from public life, society, etc.; also, an act of living in retirement or seclusion, or a period of such retirement or seclusion. (uncountable) Leisure, relaxation. The state of being withdrawn. Synonyms: privacy, seclusion (figuratively) (countable) A departure from a norm or position. (countable) A time interval during which something ceases; an interruption, a respite. (countable, geology) An overall-concave, reentrant section of a sinuous fold and thrust belt, thrust sheet, or a single thrust fault, caused by one or more of: deformation (folding and faulting) of strata and geologic structures during orogenesis, differences in the angle of critical taper during orogenesis, or differing erosional level of the present geomorphological surface. Antonym: salient (countable, anatomy) An extension or outpouching of a cavity (e.g. articular recess, peritoneal recess,...) ==== Derived terms ==== ==== Related terms ==== recession recessive ==== Translations ==== === Adjective === recess (comparative more recess, superlative most recess) (obsolete, rare) Of a place or time: distant, remote. ==== Translations ==== === Verb === recess (third-person singular simple present recesses, present participle recessing, simple past and past participle recessed) (transitive) To position (something) a distance behind another thing; to set back. (often architecture) To make a recess (noun senses 1 and 1.1) in (something). (also reflexive) Often preceded by in or into: to inset (something) into a recess or niche. (figuratively) To conceal, to hide. (chiefly US, government) To temporarily suspend (a meeting, the proceedings of an official body, etc.). (informal) To make a recess appointment in respect of (someone). (intransitive, chiefly US, government) Of a meeting, the proceedings of an official body, etc.: to adjourn, to take a break. Of an official body: to suspend proceedings for a period of time. ==== Derived terms ==== ==== Translations ==== === References === === Further reading === alcove (architecture) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia recess (break) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia recess (Holy Roman Empire) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia recess (disambiguation) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia “recess”, in Merriam-Webster.com Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present. === Anagrams === cesser, screes == Swedish == === Noun === recess c a decision, an agreement, a return (to previous conditions) a recess, a niche ==== Declension ==== ==== Synonyms ==== återgång === References === “recess”, in Svenska Akademiens ordlista [Wordlist of the Swedish Academy] (in Swedish)