Recipient is used for the person who received a distribution of money and (usually) whose name and SS# are on the IRS tax form (e.g. 1099). What specific context is the term being used? A common item is 529 education plan distributions.
For 529 plans, there is an “owner” (usually the parent), and a “beneficiary” (usually the student dependent). The "recipient" of the distribution can be either the owner or the beneficiary depending on who the money was sent to. When the money goes directly from the Qualified Tuition Plan (QTP) to the school, the student is the "recipient". The distribution will be reported on IRS form 1099-Q.
The 1099-Q gets reported on the recipient's return. The recipient's name & SS# will be on the 1099-Q.