Meaning & use

recession

noun·Academic

A period of significant decline in economic activity, typically marked by falling production and rising unemployment.

See it in a sentence

The company laid off hundreds of workers when the recession sharply reduced consumer spending.

Economists debated whether the country was heading into a recession or merely a slowdown.

A note on using this word

Economists commonly define a recession as at least two consecutive quarters of declining economic output, though the term is also used more loosely.

Words with a similar meaning

downturnslump

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

Words with an opposite meaning

boomrecovery

Make it your own

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