- plural of agendum.
agenda
Americannoun
noun
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Also called: agendum. (functioning as singular) a schedule or list of items to be attended to
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Also called: agendas. agendums. (functioning as plural) matters to be attended to, as at a meeting of a committee
Usage
Agenda, “things to be done,” is the plural of the Latin gerund agendum and is used today in the sense “a plan or list of matters to be acted upon.” In that sense it is treated as a singular noun; its plural is usually agendas: The agenda is ready for distribution. The agendas of last year's meetings are printed in the official minutes. The singular agendum, meaning “an item on an agenda,” is rare.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of agenda
First recorded in 1745–55; from Latin, plural of agendum “that which is to be done,” gerund of agere “to do, drive”; the plural originally carried a collective sense denoting the various items to be transacted
Explanation
An agenda is a list of things to do. If you're going to attend a meeting with a long agenda, you'll want to take your coffee mug along. The word agenda is the plural for of the Latin word agendum, which literally means "something to be done." The noun retains this meaning because an agenda is a plan — organized by time — of events or things to do. You might have a meeting, a lunch date, and a doctor's appointment on your agenda for the day. And when you run for office, you better have a political agenda — or a plan for what you want to get done if elected.
Vocabulary lists containing agenda
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I've Been to the Mountaintop" (1968)
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President Trump's Second State of the Union Address (2019)
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Legend
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
As he starts his term as Fed chair, Warsh can’t count on the support of his fellow governors for his agenda, Bianco said.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 25, 2026
Bylaws empower the chair to set the board’s agenda and pick a vice chair, though the board—which is largely appointed by the mayor—can expand those powers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
Roth, the Green lawmaker, said that humanitarian aid would remain on the agenda.
From Barron's ● Jul. 22, 2026
I suppose he could argue that Sarwar is an ally on his agenda to rewire how British politics works and can now agitate for change from within.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
A man who could read without moving his lips was proclaimed either divine or demonic, depending on the agenda of whoever was doing the proclaiming.
From "Challenger Deep" by Neal Shusterman
Things go in ways both expected and unexpected, the two couples warily feeling each other out as they wait to spring their own private agendas.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 25, 2026
There is no natural or preordained alliance between these groups, and at crucial moments their interests and agendas may differ.
From Salon ● Apr. 6, 2026
But when those agendas conflict, these justices seem to relish the opportunity to remind the president that they can still tell him no anytime they please.
From Slate ● Apr. 1, 2026
But the alliance between the children of two former strongmen presidents soon unravelled as they pursued separate political agendas.
From BBC ● Mar. 24, 2026
Our kids had their own agendas, which left them less impressed with even the more fun parts of ours.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
Principal agendum of the pages standing at the rostrum steps was to lift the train of each ascending delegate with combined dexterity, good timing and discretion.
From Time Magazine Archive
But a principal agendum of the conference is the limitation of submarines.
From Time Magazine Archive
The next most important agendum was the division of reparations so far received, a matter complicated by profits derived from the Ruhr occupation, seizures made, deliveries in kind received, etc.
From Time Magazine Archive
Locus ad agendum amplissimus: A place very honourable to plead in.
From The Comic Latin Grammar A new and facetious introduction to the Latin tongue by Leech, John
The Accusative of the Gerund is used only with Prepositions, chiefly ad and in to denote purpose; as,— homō ad agendum nātus est, man is born for action.
From New Latin Grammar by Bennett, Charles E. (Charles Edwin)
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
