Words can have different definitions, e.g., lead the metal versus lead the action. For clarity, some financial market terms have arbitrary but generally accepted definitions, e.g., a bear market for stocks is a decline in value of -20% or more. An economic recession generally is understood to be a period of significant decline in real economic activity that extends across the economy and lasts more than a few months. Over time, the measure of recession generally has been accepted as two consecutive quarters of decline even though the official measure is more sophisticated. Some key relationships with official recessions can provide perspective for investing ahead.