Business English

Meetings Vocabulary

word

part of speech | meaning | example sentence |

absent

adj | not present | The vice president is absent due to unforeseen circumstances. |

accomplish

verb | succeed in doing | We have a lot to accomplish today, so let's begin. |

address

verb | deal with; speak on | I hope we do not have to address this matter again in the future. |

adjourn

verb | close a meeting | If there are no further comments, we will adjourn the meeting here. |

agenda

noun | list of objectives to cover in a meeting | Please forward the agenda to anyone who is speaking at the meeting. |

AGM

noun(abbr.) | Annual (yearly) General Meeting | We always vote for a new chairperson at the AGM. |

allocate

verb | assign roles/tasks to certain people | I forgot to allocate someone to bring refreshments. |

AOB

noun(abbr.) | Any Other Business (unspecified item on agenda) | The last item on the agenda is AOB. |

apologies

noun | item on agenda announcing people who are absent; apologies for absence | Everyone is present today, so we can skip the apologies. |

ballot

noun | a type of vote, usually in writing and usually secret | Please fold your ballot in half before you place it in the box. |

board of directors

noun | group of elected members of an organization/company who meet to make decisions | The board of directors meets once a month to discuss the budget. |

boardroom

noun | a large meeting room, often has one long table and many chairs | The boardroom is reserved for a managers' meeting, so we'll have to meet in the lounge. |

brainstorm

verb | thinking to gather ideas | Let's take a few minutes and brainstorm some ways that we can cut costs. |

casting vote

noun | deciding vote (usually by the chairman) when the votes are otherwise equal | The role of treasurer was decided based on the chairman's casting vote. |

chairperson/chair

noun | the person who leads or presides at a meeting | As chair, it is my pleasure to introduce to you,...