From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishrecessre‧cess1 /rɪˈses, ˈriːses $ ˈriːses, rɪˈses/ noun 1 [countable, uncountable]PGPSCT a time during the day or year when no work is done, especially in parliament, law courts etc Parliament’s summer recess2 [uncountable] American EnglishSES a short period of time between lessons at a school when children can go outdoors and play SYN break British English Her favorite things at school are music and recess.3 [countable]DHH a space in the wall of a room, especially for shelves, cupboards etc SYN alcove4 → the recesses of something
Examples from the Corpus
recess• One of the lawyers asked the judge for a recess.• He led Owen into a recess behind a recess.• We will run them during recesses, during the luncheon recess, and all night when we recess at four each afternoon.• Congress's two-week Easter recess• Congress will return in January from its holiday recess.• The House is in recess until January 22nd, when it will vote on the Bill.• The Bill was brought before the House of Commons and passed before the summer recess.• Bush got a significant boost in the final days before the recess from two votes in the House of Representatives.• For instance, you could create two groups of miniatures in the recesses on either side of a fireplace.• If fitting your blind inside a window recess you will need to measure the full recess width and depth.recessre‧cess2 /rɪˈses $ ˈriːses, rɪˈses/ verb [intransitive] especially American EnglishPGPSCT if a government, law court etc recesses, it officially stops work for a period of time→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
recess• Newer recessed fixtures are labeled no-clearance and can be insulated over.• Congress was scheduled to recess for Easter and Passover on Friday.• It was a heavily padded room, its walls covered with recessed handholds.• Downlighters can also be recessed into ceilings, to create atmospheric pools of light on the surface below.• The judge recessed the trial for two hours.• Mount them on or recess them into a ceiling or down the side of a wall.• Then she races to recess with her new friend.Origin recess1 (1500-1600) Latin recessus, from the past participle of recedere; → RECEDE 