Word: recess Part of Speech: verb 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. Cognates * Catalan recés * Italian recesso * Middle French recès (modern French recès) * Portuguese recesso * Spanish receso Pronunciation: /ɹɪˈsɛs/, /ˈɹiːsɛs/, /ˈɹiˌsɛs/, /ɹəˈsɛs/, /ɹiˈsɛs/ 1. To position (something) a distance behind another thing; to set back. Labels: transitive Example: His house stood recessed from the road, and the stables, which are to a farm what a fireplace is to a house, were behind, their lower portions being lost amid bushes of laurel. Example: It will also enable slower-moving freight trains to be recessed in the new down goods loop to await, if necessary, a suitable margin before proceeding to Stafford or Stoke and so reduce confliction with other main-line trains. 2. To make a recess (noun senses 1 and 1.1) in (something). Labels: often, transitive Example: to recess a wall 3. Often preceded by in or into: to inset (something) into a recess or niche. Labels: also, often, reflexive, transitive Example: That gargoyle recesses into the rest of architecture. Example: Recess the screw so it does not stick out. 4. To conceal, to hide. Labels: figuratively, transitive Example: Get near fat Mr. Dutton, and behind the screen of his prodigious elbow, you will be comfortably recessed from curious impertinents. 5. To temporarily suspend (a meeting, the proceedings of an official body, etc.). Labels: US, transitive Example: When Congress is recessed, he makes himself acquainted with those free United States, of which he is the gifted son. 6. To make a recess appointment in respect of (someone). Labels: US, informal, transitive Example: To the National Rifle Association's delight, the Senate has hobbled the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives by failing to confirm a director since 2006, but [Barack] Obama hasn't made a recess appointment. […] "The President's view of his own power is a constrained one," says White House counsel Kathryn Ruemmler. "Many of his nominees have languished, but he's only recessed the ones that were critical to keep agencies functioning." 7. Of a meeting, the proceedings of an official body, etc.: to adjourn, to take a break. Labels: US, intransitive Example: Class will recess for 20 minutes. Example: The meeting was recessed at midday. 8. Of an official body: to suspend proceedings for a period of time. Labels: US, intransitive Example: This court shall recess for its lunch break now. Example: The court recessed early for the weekend.