recession

/ɹɪˈsɛʃn̩/

//ɹɪˈsɛʃn̩// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"recession" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“recession” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #8,977. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#8,977
frequency rank, English
3,094
“R” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
7
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The act or an instance of receding or withdrawing.

Corpus desk

Index EN-recession · recession · English

recession · rank #8,977 · 12 variants · 7 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #8,977
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 7 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,094
  • PHOTO-FINISH Richards

Nearest frequency peer: Richards (+1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “recession”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “recession” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

recession vs remission
78% similar
recession vs recessive
78% similar
recession vs recursion
78% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for recession
PropertyValue
Headwordrecession
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ɹɪˈsɛʃn̩/
Letters9
Frequency rank#8,977
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs7
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “recession”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).recessionlands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “Richards” (#8,978), “railways” (#8,975), “rim” (#8,979). Among 3,094 “R” headwords, “recession” is #8,977. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around recession (IPA /ɹɪˈsɛʃn̩/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #8,977 among 3,094 “R” headwords. Wiktionary lists 6 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for recession, with forms such as "ercession", "rceession", and "reccession". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 7 confusable-pair relationships, "remission", "recessive", "recursion", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Latin recessiō, from recēdō (“recede, retreat”), from re- (“back”) + cēdō (“to go”). By surface analysis, recess + -ion. The correct English form is recession, spelled R-E-C-E-S-S-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    The act or an instance of receding or withdrawing.
  2. 2
    A period of low temperatures that causes a reduction in species; ice age.
  3. 3
    A period of reduced economic activity.
  4. 4
    The ceremonial filing out of clergy and/or choir at the end of a church service.
  5. 5
    The act of ceding something back.
  6. 6
    A procedure in which an extraocular muscle is detached from the globe of the eye and reattached posteriorly.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how recession appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. […]that light may break forth from the deepest enclosures of darkness, and mercy may rejoice upon the recessions of justice, and grace may triumph upon the ruin of sin, and God may be glorified in the miracles of our conversion, and the wonders of our preservation and glories of our being saved.
  2. Eastward in Bosnia, while the central European clime prevails, the thermic gradient does not follow the recession in the north latitude, but the elevation of the terrain.

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin recessiō, from recēdō (“recede, retreat”), from re- (“back”) + cēdō (“to go”). By surface analysis, recess + -ion.

This word in other languages

recesión(Español)récession(Français)Rezession(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ercession
  • rceession
  • reccession
  • recesion
  • recesison
  • recessino
  • recessionn
  • recessoin
  • recestion
  • recsesion
  • reecssion
  • rrecession

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of recession - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

ercession2rceession2reccession1recesion1recesison2recessino2recessionn1recessoin2
Edit distance from "recession"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "recession"?
"recession" is spelled R-E-C-E-S-S-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ɹɪˈsɛʃn̩/.
What does "recession" mean?
As a noun, "recession" means: The act or an instance of receding or withdrawing.
What words are commonly confused with "recession"?
"recession" is commonly confused with "remission", "recessive", "recursion". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "recession"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "recession" is /ɹɪˈsɛʃn̩/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "recession"?
Borrowed from Latin recessiō, from recēdō (“recede, retreat”), from re- (“back”) + cēdō (“to go”). By surface analysis, recess + -ion. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "recession", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Princeton#8,973possessed#8,972superhero#8,991merchants#8,957

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (12 here; floor ≥5).

railways12 variantsPeterson12 variantsnecklace12 variantslengthy12 variants

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list