briefing

[ bree-fing ]

/ ˈbri fɪŋ /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR briefing ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

Military. a short, factual oral summary of the details of a current or projected military operation given to the participants or observers.

any set of concise instructions or a summary of events.

Nearby words

Origin of briefing

First recorded in 1860–65; brief + -ing¹

Definition for briefing (2 of 2)

brief

[ breef ]

/ brif /

adjective, brief·er, brief·est.

lasting or taking a short time; of short duration: a brief walk; a brief stay in the country.

using few words; concise; succinct: a brief report on weather conditions.

abrupt or curt.

scanty: a brief bathing suit.

noun

a short and concise statement or written item.

an outline, the form of which is determined by set rules, of all the possible arguments and information on one side of a controversy: a debater's brief.

Law.

a writ summoning one to answer to any action.
a memorandum of points of fact or of law for use in conducting a case.
a written argument submitted to a court.
(in England) the material relevant to a case, delivered by a solicitor to the barrister who tries the case.

an outline, summary, or synopsis, as of a book.

briefs, (used with a plural verb) close-fitting, legless underpants with an elastic waistband.

a briefing.

Roman Catholic Church. a papal letter less formal than a bull, sealed with the pope's signet ring or stamped with the device borne on this ring.

British Theater. a free ticket; pass.

Obsolete. a letter.

verb (used with object)

to make an abstract or summary of.

to instruct by a brief or briefing: They brief all the agents before assigning them.

Law. to retain as advocate in a suit.

Origin of brief

1250–1300; Middle English bref < Anglo-French, Old French < Latin brevis short; see breve

SYNONYMS FOR brief

1 short-lived, fleeting, transitory, ephemeral, transient. See short.

2 terse, compact, pithy, condensed.

5 outline, précis, epitome, abstract. See summary.

14 summarize, outline.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR brief ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

brief·er, nounbrief·ness, nounun·brief, adjectiveun·brief·ly, adverb

un·brief·ness, nounun·briefed, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for briefing

Specifically, what briefing did the flight crew receive before they went to the airplane?
Annoying Airport Delays Might Prevent You From Becoming the Next AirAsia 8501|Clive Irving|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
They spoke anonymously as a condition of giving the briefing.
This Is Obama’s U.N. Plan to Choke Off ISIS’s Recruits|Kimberly Dozier|September 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Senior administration officials predicted easy passage of the resolution in a briefing with reporters Monday.
This Is Obama’s U.N. Plan to Choke Off ISIS’s Recruits|Kimberly Dozier|September 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The police have been criticized for briefing journalists before the home-search.
Sir Cliff Richard Faces Sex Assault Claim, Criticizes Police Raid On His Home|Tim Teeman|August 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST

An ISIS attack on Jordan could make an already complex conflict nightmarishly tangled, the officials added in their briefing.
Israel Could Get Dragged Into ISIS’s War, Obama Admin Warns|Eli Lake|June 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The voice of the briefing officer was a dull hum in his ears.
Breakaway|Stanley Gimble
When the briefing was over, they crowded out of the room and into the mess for hot coffee and sandwiches.
A Yankee Flier Over Berlin|Al Avery
Stan unloaded his gear in the briefing room and walked across to the colonel's headquarters.
A Yankee Flier in Italy|Rutherford G. Montgomery
"Malinkoff is too deep in something to come to the briefing," Wong said.
Eight Keys to Eden|Mark Irvin Clifton
The three coal barge nurses returned to the briefing room and checked their chutes which had been discarded on the field.
A Yankee Flier with the R.A.F.|Rutherford G. Montgomery

British Dictionary definitions for briefing (1 of 2)

briefing

/ (ˈbriːfɪŋ) /

noun

a meeting at which detailed information or instructions are given, as for military operations, etc

the facts presented during such a meeting

British Dictionary definitions for briefing (2 of 2)

brief

/ (briːf) /

adjective

short in durationa brief holiday

short in length or extent; scantya brief bikini

abrupt in manner; brusquethe professor was brief with me this morning

terse or concise; containing few wordshe made a brief statement

noun

a condensed or short statement or written synopsis; abstract

law a document containing all the facts and points of law of a case by which a solicitor instructs a barrister to represent a client

RC Church a letter issuing from the Roman court written in modern characters, as contrasted with a papal bull; papal brief

short for briefing

a paper outlining the arguments and information on one side of a debate

British slang a lawyer, esp a barrister

hold a brief for to argue for; champion

in brief in short; to sum up

verb (tr)

to prepare or instruct by giving a summary of relevant facts

to make a summary or synopsis of

English law

to instruct (a barrister) by brief
to retain (a barrister) as counsel

(intr foll by against) to supply potentially damaging or negative information regarding somone, as to the media, a politician, etcSee also briefs

Derived Formsbriefly, adverbbriefness, noun

Word Origin for brief

C14: from Old French bref, from Latin brevis; related to Greek brakhus

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for briefing (1 of 4)

briefing

"fact or situation of giving preliminary instructions," 1910 (but popularized by World War II pre-flight conferences), verbal noun from brief (v.).

Word Origin and History for briefing (1 of 4)

brief

adj.

late 13c., from Latin brevis (adj.) "short, low, little, shallow," from PIE *mregh-wi-, from root *mregh-u- "short" (cf. Greek brakhys "short," Old Church Slavonic bruzeja "shallow places, shoals," Gothic gamaurgjan "to shorten").

Word Origin and History for briefing (2 of 4)

brief

from Latin breve (genitive brevis), noun derivative of adjective brevis (see brief (adj.)) which came to mean "letter, summary," specifically a letter of the pope (less ample and solemn than a bull), and thus came to mean "letter of authority," which yielded the modern, legal sense of "summary of the facts of a case" (1630s).

Word Origin and History for briefing (3 of 4)

brief

"to give instructions or information to," 1866; originally "to instruct by a brief" (1862), from brief (n.). Related: Briefed; briefing.

Idioms and Phrases with briefing

brief

see hold no brief for; in brief.

briefing

noun

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of briefing

Definition for briefing (2 of 2)

brief

adjective, brief·er, brief·est.

noun

verb (used with object)

Origin of brief

Examples from the Web for briefing

British Dictionary definitions for briefing (1 of 2)

briefing

noun

British Dictionary definitions for briefing (2 of 2)

brief

adjective

noun

verb (tr)

Word Origin for brief

Word Origin and History for briefing (1 of 4)

briefing

Word Origin and History for briefing (1 of 4)

brief

Word Origin and History for briefing (2 of 4)

brief

Word Origin and History for briefing (3 of 4)

brief

Idioms and Phrases with briefing

brief