1 N‑SING [oft N n, oft at N ] The reception in a hotel is the desk or office that books rooms for people and answers their questions. [mainly BRIT ] □ Have him bring a car round to the reception. □ …the hotel's reception desk. in AM, use front desk 2 N‑SING [oft N n, oft at N ] The reception in an office or hospital is the place where people's appointments and questions are dealt with. [mainly BRIT ] □ Wait at reception for me.
3 N‑COUNT A reception is a formal party which is given to welcome someone or to celebrate a special event. □ At the reception they served smoked salmon.
4 N‑COUNT [usu sing] If someone or something has a particular kind of reception , that is the way that people react to them. □ The President was given a tumultuous reception.
5 N‑UNCOUNT If you get good reception from your mobile phone, radio, or television, the sound or picture is clear because the signal is strong. If the reception is poor, the sound or picture is unclear because the signal is weak. □ Adjust the aerial's position and direction for the best reception.
6 N‑SING Reception is the same as reception class .
re|ce p|tion cen|tre (reception centres ) N‑COUNT A reception centre is a place where people who have no homes or are being looked after by the government can live until somewhere else is found for them to live. [mainly BRIT ]
re|ce p|tion class (reception classes ) N‑COUNT A reception class is a class that children go into when they first start school at the age of four or five. [BRIT ]
re|cep|tion|ist /r I se pʃən I st/ (receptionists )
1 N‑COUNT In a hotel, the receptionist is the person whose job is to book rooms for people and answer their questions. [mainly BRIT ] in AM, use desk clerk 2 N‑COUNT In an office or hospital, the receptionist is the person whose job is to answer the phone, arrange appointments, and deal with people when they first arrive.
re|ce p|tion room (reception rooms ) N‑COUNT A reception room is a room in a house, for example a living room, where people can sit. This expression is often used in descriptions of houses that are for sale. [BRIT ]
re|cep|tive /r I se pt I v/
1 ADJ Someone who is receptive to new ideas or suggestions is prepared to consider them or accept them. □ [+ to ] The voters had seemed receptive to his ideas. ● re|cep|tive|ness N‑UNCOUNT □ There was less receptiveness to liberalism in some areas.
2 ADJ If someone who is ill is receptive to treatment, they start to get better when they are given treatment. □ [+ to ] …those patients who are not receptive to treatment.
re|cep|tor /r I se ptə r / (receptors ) N‑COUNT Receptors are nerve endings in your body which react to changes and stimuli and make your body respond in a particular way. [TECHNICAL ] □ …the information receptors in our brain.
re|cess /r I se s, riː ses/ (recesses , recessing , recessed )
1 N‑COUNT [oft in N ] A recess is a break between the periods of work of an official body such as a committee, a court of law, or a government. □ The conference broke for a recess.
2 VERB When formal meetings or court cases recess , they stop temporarily. [FORMAL ] □ [V + for ] The hearings have now recessed for dinner. □ [V ] Before the trial recessed today, the lawyer read her opening statement.
3 N‑COUNT In a room, a recess is part of a wall which is built further back than the rest of the wall. Recesses are often used as a place to put furniture such as shelves. □ …a discreet recess next to a fireplace.
4 N‑COUNT [usu pl] The recesses of something or somewhere are the parts of it which are hard to see because light does not reach them or they are hidden from view. □ [+ of ] He emerged from the dark recesses of the garage.
5 N‑COUNT [usu pl] If you refer to the recesses of someone's mind or soul, you are referring to thoughts or feelings they have which are hidden or difficult to describe. □ [+ of ] There was something in the darker recesses of his unconscious that was troubling him.
re|cessed /riː sest/ ADJ If something such as a door or window is recessed , it is set into the wall that surrounds it. □ …a wide passage, lit from one side by recessed windows.
re|ces|sion ◆◆◇ /r I se ʃ ə n/ (recessions ) N‑VAR A recession is a period when the economy of a country is doing badly, for example because industry is producing less and more people are becoming unemployed. □ The oil price increases sent Europe into deep recession. COLLOCATIONS recession NOUN
adjective + recession : deep, economic, global; deepening, looming, prolonged
verb + recession : avoid, beat, survive, weather SYNONYMS recession NOUN
depression: He never forgot the hardships he witnessed during the Great Depression of the 1930s.
slump: …the slump of the early 1980s.
credit crunch: The most common argument for cutting interest rates is to prevent a global credit crunch.
downturn: They predicted a severe economic downturn.
re|ces|sion|al /r I se ʃən ə l/
1 N‑SING The recessional is a religious song which is sung at the end of a church service.
2 ADJ [ADJ n] Recessional means related to an economic recession. □ Many home sellers remain stuck in a recessional rut.
re|ces|sion|ary /r I se ʃ ə nri/ ADJ [ADJ n] Recessionary means relating to an economic recession or having the effect of creating a recession. □ Reduced interest rates would help ease recessionary pressures in the economy.