the act of receding or withdrawing.

a receding part of a wall, building, etc.

a withdrawing procession, as at the end of a religious service.

Economics . a period of an economic contraction, sometimes limited in scope or duration. Compare depression ( def. 7 ) .

noun

advance , inflation

noun

bad times , bankruptcy , big trouble , bottom-out , bust , collapse , decline , deflation , depression , downturn , hard times , inflation , rainy days , shakeout , slide , slump , stagnation , unemploymentnotes:a choir entering a church is a procession ; leaving is a recession , abatement , declension , decrescence , diminution , lull , off year , pause , retreat , retrocession , withdrawal