recessions

noun

plural of recession
1
as in slumps
a period of decreased economic activity the country is just coming out of a recession, so expect to see fewer layoffs and more new jobs in the coming year

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in withdrawals
an act of moving away especially from something difficult, dangerous, or disagreeable a retiring CEO making a gradual recession from the daily rigors of running a major corporation

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of recessions The other concerns a surprising relationship between recessions and automation, when businesses use technology to do tasks that were previously done by humans. — Greg Rosalsky, NPR, 20 Oct. 2026 Historically, such rate hikes have often slowed growth and have even led to recessions. — ABC News, 21 Sep. 2026 But recessions have typically taken much longer to arrive, averaging 42 months from the first hike to the next downturn, and sometimes don't materialize at all. — Alexa Lomonaco, CNBC, 17 Sep. 2026 But recessions had a way of tightening belts and depressing clutch pedals. — Jody Mamone, Hartford Courant, 14 Sep. 2026 Currency collapses, banking crises, and deep recessions struck the East Asian deficit countries, while the surplus countries bore few costs. — Michael Pettis, Foreign Affairs, 28 Aug. 2026 Washington no longer borrows only during wars, recessions or national emergencies. — Carolyn Bourdeaux, Chicago Tribune, 23 Aug. 2026 And the Congressional Budget Office estimated earlier this week that the annual gap between government revenue and spending would top $2 trillion this year, a remarkable number outside of recessions. — Christopher Rugaber, Los Angeles Times, 21 Aug. 2026 The federal budget deficit is running at about 6% of gross domestic product, a historically high rate the United States has rarely seen outside of wartime or deep recessions. — Allison Morrow, CNN Money, 21 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for recessions
  1. slumps
  2. withdrawals
  3. depressions
  4. retirements
  5. retreats
Noun
  • In last year’s World Series, Ohtani had endured hitting slumps, too, but his teammates compensated with timely contributions to earn a second consecutive title.
    — Andrew Greif, NBC news, 16 Oct. 2026
  • When healthy, Ohtani has the ability to break out of even the most dire of slumps with an otherworldly performance, like that three-homer (as a hitter), 10-strikeout (as a pitcher) all-timer.
    — Maddie Lee, Los Angeles Times, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of slumps
Noun
  • Agriculture accounts for around 72% of the world’s freshwater withdrawals, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization.
    — Adhum Carter Wolde-Lule, Fortune, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Revolut said on its website that several of its services were partially unavailable, including card payments, topping up balances via bank cards, ATM withdrawals and currency exchange.
    — CNN Money, CNN Money, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of withdrawals
Noun
  • Old channels linger as soft depressions across the floodplain, now filled with bog vegetation in muted shades of yellow, green, and brown—living traces of flowing water long since gone.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 16 Oct. 2026
  • In the Atlantic, the weakest of these systems are called tropical depressions.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 9 Oct. 2026
Definition of depressions
Noun
  • Spirit Airlines' ghost planes The problems with young retirements predate Spirit's collapse.
    — Leslie Josephs, CNBC, 24 Oct. 2026
  • With a pending lockout, expiring player contracts and possible retirements, who knows what the future will hold.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of retirements
Noun
  • Sylge, who has spent the last 30 years attending and organizing health and wellness retreats around the world, developed this exercise to help people reclaim their time.
    — Margaret Cirino, NPR, 23 Oct. 2026
  • The Door offers seven-day retreats, reasoning that that’s the amount of time required to bring you back to you.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of retreats

Browse Nearby Words

recessionals
recessions
recessive
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Cite this Entry

“Recessions.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/recessions. Accessed 29 Oct. 2026.

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