briefing

briefing — noun

1. a short meeting held before a task, trip, or event so people can get the facts a

1.nounB2
Definition

a short meeting held before a task, trip, or event so people can get the facts and directions they need.

Example

Before the rescue trip, the team attended a safety briefing at dawn.

attend a briefing; common collocation safety briefing

At nine, the pilots gathered for a weather briefing in the control room.

briefing on conditions before work starts

Common collocations
  • safety briefing
  • weather briefing
  • quick briefing
  • briefing for parents
  • morning briefing
Synonyms
  • meeting

    more general; a briefing is usually shorter and focused on key facts

  • session

    broader; can cover training or discussion, not only quick preparation

  • orientation

    often longer and used for helping someone get used to a new place or role

Grammar Patterns

briefing for + group

briefing on + topic

attend a briefing

Usage Note

Often follows 'for' to name the audience and 'on' or 'about' to name the subject. Distinguish from sense 2: this sense is the meeting itself, not the message or document people take away from it.

Common Mistakes

Staff got briefing before the show.
Staff got a briefing before the show.
this sense is usually countable, so it normally needs an article.
We had a briefing for discuss the route.
We had a briefing to discuss the route.
use a to-infinitive to show the purpose of the meeting.

2. the important information and instructions people are given before they begin so

2.nounB2
Definition

the important information and instructions people are given before they begin something, often in a spoken or written summary.

Example

Each driver received a written briefing before the mountain race began.

written briefing; receive a briefing

The morning briefing warned crews about heavy rain near the bridge.

briefing as the information itself

Common collocations
  • written briefing
  • one-page briefing
  • briefing on test results
  • daily briefing
  • background briefing
Synonyms
  • summary

    broader; does not always prepare someone for action

  • instructions

    stresses what to do, while a briefing usually also includes background facts

  • update

    often means new information after a change, not a planned preparation note

Grammar Patterns

briefing on + topic

read a briefing

written briefing

Usage Note

Often modified by words such as 'written', 'daily', or 'one-page', and common after verbs like 'read', 'prepare', 'receive', and 'give'. Distinguish from sense 1: here the focus is the content, which may exist as notes or a document even when no meeting is emphasized.

Common Mistakes

I read the briefing about of the visit.
I read the briefing about the visit.
do not add 'of' after 'about'.
The paper gave us many briefing.
The paper gave us a briefing.
use the singular form for one set of instructions or one summary.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

For noun/1, a briefing is a short, focused meeting that prepares people for something specific. A meeting is the broad everyday word and may be longer, less urgent, or more discussion-based. A session is also broad, and it often suggests a scheduled part of training, class, or treatment. An orientation usually helps someone get used to a new job, school, or place, so it is often longer and more introductory than a briefing. An update is mainly new information, and it does not always happen in a meeting. You can say, 'We had a briefing before the flight,' but 'We had an orientation before the flight' sounds odd unless people were new to the job.

meeting ↗session ↗orientation ↗update ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • daily briefing
  • morning briefing
  • safety briefing
  • written briefing

Phrases

  • give a briefing
  • receive a briefing
  • prepare a briefing

Prepositions

  • briefing for + group
  • briefing on + topic
  • briefing about + topic

Etymology

LatinOld FrenchEnglish

Briefing comes from the verb brief, meaning to give someone the main facts in a short form. Brief itself goes back to Latin brevis, meaning 'short', and came into English through French. The -ing form first named the act of giving this short preparation, and later also came to mean the meeting or document used for it.