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rĕ-cēdo, cessi, cessum, 3, v. n.,

  1. I. to go back, fall back, give ground, retire, withdraw, recede.
    1. A. Lit. (class.; cf.: decedo, abscedo): pone nos recede, Plaut. Poen. 3, 2, 34: ego abs te procul recedam, id. Mil. 2, 4, 4: hinc, id. Bacch. 4, 1, 7: illuc, id. Rud. 3, 5, 7: recedere loco, id. Am. 1, 1, 84; cf.: centuriones ex eo quo stabant loco recesserunt, Caes. B. G. 5, 43: non modo illum e Galliā non discessisse, sed ne a Mutinā quidem recessisse, Cic. Phil. 8, 7, 21: procul a telo veniente, Ov. M. 12, 359: de medio, Cic. Rosc. Am. 38, 112: ab hoste, Ov. P. 3, 1, 151: longius, Verg. G. 4, 191: tristis recedo, Hor. Ep. 1, 16, 35; id. C. 2, 19, 31: ab Illiturgi, Liv. 24, 41: in castra Corneliana, Caes. B. C. 2, 30 fin.
      1. 2. In partic., to retire to one’s bedchamber, go to rest, Petr. 85, 5; Ov. Ib. 239.
    2. B. Transf.
      1. 1. Of inanimate and abstract things: ut illae undae ad alios accedant, ab aliis autem recedant, Cic. Planc. 6, 15: verba movere loco, quamvis invita recedant, yield, Hor. Ep. 2, 2, 113: multa ferunt anni venientes commoda secum, Multa recedentes adimunt, the departing years, id. A. P. 176: abeant ac recedant voces illae, Plin. Pan. 2, 2.
      2. 2. Of places, things, etc., to stand back, recede (i. e. to be distant or retired; freq., esp. after the Aug. per.): secreta parentis Anchisae domus arboribusque obtecta recessit, Verg. A. 2, 300; cf. Cat. 64, 43; and: etsi lata recessit Urbe domus, Stat. Th. 5, 242; Plin. Ep. 2, 17, 21: Palaestina vocabatur, quā contingit Arabas … et quā recedit intus, Damascena, Plin. 5, 12, 13, § 66: Magna Graecia in tres sinus recedens Ausonii maris, id. 3, 10, 15, § 95; 4, 10, 17, § 33; Sen. Cons. ad Marc. 18.
        Of nations: gens Cappadocum longissime Ponticarum omnium introrsus recedens, Plin. 6, 8, 8, § 24.
        In a painting, etc.: pictor vi artis suae efficit, ut quaedam eminere in opere, quaedam recessisse credamus, Quint. 2, 17, 21; cf.: venter recessit, Plin. Ep. 3, 6, 2.
        Poet., of places, which appear to recede by our departure from them: provehimur portu, terraeque urbesque recedunt, Verg. A. 3, 72: mea terra recedit, Ov. M. 8, 139; 11, 466; Sil. 3, 157; Stat. Th. 1, 549 al.
  2. II. In gen., to go away, withdraw, retire, depart from a place, to abandon a thing, = discedere.
    1. A. Lit. (in good prose very rare), = discedere, haec effatu’ pater, germana, repente recessit, vanished, Enn. ap. Cic. Div. 1, 20, 40 (Ann. v. 48 Vahl.): nec vero a stabulis pluviā impendente recedunt Longius (apes), Verg. G. 4, 191; Plin. Ep. 1, 13, 2.
      1. 2. Transf., of things, to separate from any thing (with which it was previously connected): in aliis ossibus ex toto saepe fragmentum a fragmento recedit, Cels. 8, 7, 1: carnes ab ossibus, Plin. 22, 8, 9, § 22; 19, 5, 23, § 67: caput e cervice, Ov. P. 2, 8, 65; for which also: caput cervice, id. H. 16, 153; cf. id. F. 6, 708; Luc. 8, 674.
    2. B. Trop., to withdraw, depart, desist (class.; esp. freq. in Cic. and Quint.): si quid vos per laborem recte feceritis, labor ille a vobis cito recedet, Cato ap. Gell. 16, 1, 4: avius a verā longe ratione recedit, Lucr. 2, 229: senes, ut in otia tuta recedant, aiunt, etc., Hor. S. 1, 1, 31: ab officio recedere, Cic. Off. 3, 4, 19; Auct. Her. 3, 3, 5; Cic. Caecin. 20, 58: ab armis, i. e. to lay them down, id. Rosc. Am. 6, 16: penitus a naturā, id. Fin. 4, 16, 43: ab eodem exemplo, Quint. 1, 6, 6; 2, 8, 13; 7, 3, 21: a sententiis ejus, ab omni voluntate, consiliisque, Cic. Att. 12, 4, 2: a vitā, i. e. to kill one’s self, id. Tusc. 4, 17, 40 (but Plin. 29, 1, 5, § 6, to die, in gen., a doubtful conjecture; Jahn, procedente vitā): a veritatis viā longe, Lact. 2, 8, 1: ab oppugnatione, Hirt. B. G. 8, 40.
      Very freq. of inanimate and abstract subjects: postquam recessit vita patrio corpore, Plaut. Merc. prol. 73: (nomen hostis) a peregrino recessit et proprie in eo, qui arma contra ferret, remansit, has lost the signification of foreigner, Cic. Off. 1, 12, 37; so, res a consuetudine, id. Quint. 21, 67; Quint. 2, 13, 11: figurae sententiarum ab illo simplici modo indicandi recedunt, id. 9, 2, 1: ab usu cotidiano, id. 10, 1, 44 et saep.
      Poet., with simple abl.: sic nunquam corde recedit Nata tuo, departs, Stat. S. 3, 5, 55.
      Absol., to vanish, pass away, disappear: et pariter Phoebes, pariter maris ira recessit, Ov. M. 12, 36: spes, Luc. 7, 688: quonam nostri tibi cura recessit? Verg. A. 2, 595: fortuna recessit, id. ib. 3, 53.
      With in: in ventos vita recessit, passed away into the winds, Verg. A. 4, 705.
      Hence, * rĕcessus, a, um, P. a. (acc. to I. B.), drawn back, receding: scaena recessior, standing farther back, Vitr. 5, 8.

1. rĕcessus, a, um, Part. and P. a., v. recedo.

2. rĕcessus, ūs, m. [recedo],

  1. I. a going back, receding, retiring, retreat, departure; opp. accessus (class.; cf. receptus): accessus ad res salutares, a pestiferis recessus, Cic. N. D. 2, 12, 34: ut luna accessu et recessu suo lumen accipiat, id. de Or. 3, 45, 178.
    Of the ebb of the tide: quid de fretis aut de marinis aestibus plura dicam? quorum accessus et recessus lunae motu gubernantur, Cic. Div. 2, 14, 34; so Col. 8, 17, 9: recessum primis ultimi non dabant, i. e. means of retreat, * Caes. B. G. 5, 43; Cael. ap. Cic. Fam. 8, 10, 1: gemmae, its removal from the eye, Plin. 37, 6, 23, § 88: cum processui et recessui cani juberet, i. e. in going home, Treb. Gall. 17, 3; Amm. 20, 11, 8.
    1. B. Meton. (abstr. pro concreto), a distant, retired, or secret spot, a nook, corner, retreat, recess (acc. to recedo, I. B. 2.; syn.: secessus, secretum): mihi solitudo et recessus provincia est, Cic. Att. 12, 26, 2; cf.: nos terrarum ac libertatis extremos recessus ipse ac sinus famae in hunc diem defendit, our remote position itself and our distant renown, Tac. Agr. 30: nec, sicut aestivas aves, statim auctumno tecta ac recessum circumspicere, Liv. 5, 6, 2: cum vox quasi in recessu oris auditur, Quint. 1, 5, 32: hic spelunca fuit, vasto submota recessu, in a deep recess, Verg. A. 8, 193; cf. Ov. M. 3, 157; 10, 691; 11, 592: ubi marmoreo Superi sedere recessu, in the marble hall, id. ib. 1, 177: oculi in recessu cavo, Plin. 8, 33, 51, § 121.
      In plur., Verg. A. 11, 527; Liv. 38, 45 (along with anguli); Vell. 2, 32, 4; Plin. 3, 1, 1, § 5; Quint. 11, 2, 18; Ov. M. 7, 670; 13, 902; id. F. 1, 555; Curt. 7, 2, 22.
  2. II. Trop.: tum accessus a te ad causam facti, tum recessus, advances and retreats, Cic. Fam. 9, 14, 7: habeat illa in dicendo admiratio ac summa laus umbram aliquam et recessum, quo magis id, quod erit illuminatum, extare atque eminere videatur, somewhat of shade and background, Cic. de Or. 3, 26, 101; cf.: haec professio plus habet in recessu quam fronte promittit, Quint. 1, 4, 2.
    In plur.: vita hominum altos recessus magnasque latebras habet, Plin. Ep. 3, 3, 6: in animis hominum tantae latebrae sunt et tanti recessus, Cic. Marc. 7, 22: strenua ingenia, quo plus recessus sumunt, leisure, Val. Max. 3, 6, 1.