recess vs pause

recess and pause both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
recess	Yes	No	Yes	No
pause	Yes	No	Yes	No

As nouns, pause is a hypernym of recess; that is, pause is a word with a broader meaning than recess:

recess (noun)	pause (noun)
a pause from doing something (as work)	temporary inactivity
an enclosure that is set back or indented	a time interval during which there is a temporary cessation of something
an arm off of a larger body of water (often between rocky headlands)
a small concavity
a state of abeyance or suspended business

recess (verb)	pause (verb)
close at the end of a session	cease an action temporarily
make a recess in	interrupt temporarily an activity before continuing
put into a recess