By Scott Ronalds

If you look up the term ‘credit crisis’ on Google, you’ll get close to 50 million results. Over the past year or so, you would be hard pressed to find two more commonly used words in the business world (other than the usual expletives that abound in falling markets).

In a nutshell, the phrase refers to an impairment or reduction in the availability of credit (or cash) to businesses and individuals.

We’ve referenced the term often in our reporting and discussions with clients, as it is this constriction in the flow of and access to capital that has been a key factor in the economic and market downturn.

While we have recently seen an improvement in the markets and the ‘crisis’ has subsided, we’re not out of the woods just yet, and the term will likely continue to fill the channels of the business media.

If you’re looking for a detailed, yet plain-English, explanation of the credit crisis, the New York Times has an online feature worth checking out. The site’s Credit Crisis – The Essentials section provides an overview and running commentary (updated periodically) of the current crisis, and has a series of multimedia features for numbers junkies.