English Professional

Session 6 – Vocabulary on Business Meeting Activity 1

First, study the following words.

Word
part of Meaning Example sentence
speech

absent not present The vice president is absent due to

adj unforeseen circumstances.

accomplish succeed in doing We have a lot

verb to accomplish today, so let's
begin.

address deal with; speak on I hope we do not have

verb to address this matter again in the
future.

adjourn close a meeting If there are no further comments,

verb we will adjourn the meeting here.

agenda list of objectives to cover in a Please forward the agenda to

noun meeting anyone who is speaking at the
meeting.

AGM Annual (yearly) General Meeting We always vote for a new

noun(abbr.) chairperson at the AGM.

allocate assign roles/tasks to certain I forgot to allocate someone to

verb people bring refreshments.

AOB Any Other Business (unspecified The last item on the agenda
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Session 6 – Vocabulary on Business Meeting Activity 1

Word
part of Meaning Example sentence
speech

noun(abbr.) item on agenda) is AOB.

apologies item on agenda announcing Everyone is present today, so we

noun people who are absent; apologies can skip the apologies.
for absence

ballot a type of vote, usually in writing Please fold your ballot in half

noun and usually secret before you place it in the box.

board of group of elected members of an The board of directors meets once

directors organization/company who meet a month to discuss the budget.
noun to make decisions

boardroom a large meeting room, often has The boardroom is reserved for a

noun one long table and many chairs managers' meeting, so we'll have
to meet in the lounge.

brainstorm thinking to gather ideas Let's take a few minutes

verb and brainstorm some ways that
we can cut costs.

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

chairperson/ the person who leads or As chair, it is my pleasure to

chair
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Session 6 – Vocabulary on Business Meeting Activity 1

noun presides at a meeting introduce to you, Mr. Allan Davis.

clarification/ explanation/proof that Before we address this matter, I'll

verification something is need some clarification as to who
noun true/understood was involved.

closing last thoughts spoken in a I just have a few closing remarks and

remarks meeting (i.e. reminders, then you will all be free to go.
noun thank yous)

collaborate work together as a The board fell apart because the

verb pair/group members had difficulty collaborating.

commence begin We will commence as soon as the

verb last person signs the attendance
sheet.

comment express one's opinions or If you have a comment, please raise

verb or noun thoughts your hand rather than speak out.

conference formal meeting for Before the conference there will be a

noun discussion, esp. a regular one private meeting for board members
held by an organisation only.

conference telephone meeting between Please make sure I have no

call three or more people in interruptions while I'm on
noun different locations the conference call.

confidential private; not to be shared Any financial information shared

adjective during this meeting should be
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Session 6 – Vocabulary on Business Meeting Activity 1

kept confidential.

consensus general agreement If we cannot come to a consensus by

noun the end of the meeting we will put it
to a vote.

deadline due date for completion The deadline for buying tickets to the

noun conference is May 25th.

designate assign If no one volunteers to take the

verb minutes I will be forced
to designate someone.

formality a procedure (often Everyone knows who is going to be

noun unnecessary) that has to be the next vice president, so this vote is
followed due to a rule really just a formality.

grievance complaint The first item on the agenda relates

noun to a grievance reported by the
interns.

guest speaker person who joins the group in I am delighted to welcome our guest
noun order to share information or speaker Holly, who is going to be
deliver a speech offering some sales pitch tips.

implement make something happen; It's not a question of whether or not

verb follow through we're going to use this idea, it's
whether or not we know how
to implement it.

mandatory required It is mandatory that all supervisors

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Session 6 – Vocabulary on Business Meeting Activity 1

adjective attend Friday's meeting.

minutes a written record of everything Before we begin with today's

noun said at a meeting meeting, let's quickly review
the minutes from last month.

motion a suggestion put to a vote The motion to extend store hours has

noun been passed.

objectives goals to accomplish I'm pleased that we were able to

noun cover all of the objectives today
within the designated time.

opening chairperson or leader's first As I mentioned in my opening

remarks words at a meeting (i.e. remarks, we have to clear this room
noun welcome, introductions) before the end of the hour.

overhead machine with a special light I'm going to put a pie chart on
projector that projects a document the overhead projector so that
noun onto a screen or wall so that everyone can visualize how our
all can see profits have declined.

participant person who attends and joins Can I have a show of hands of all of
noun in on an event those who were participants in last
year's conference?

proxy vote a vote cast by one person for There must have been one proxy
noun or in place of another vote because I count twelve ballots
but only eleven attendees.

punctual on time (not late) Firstly, I want to thank you all for
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Session 6 – Vocabulary on Business Meeting Activity 1

adjective being punctual despite this early

meeting.

recommend suggest I recommend that you sit closer to

verb the front if you have trouble hearing.

show of hands raised hands to express an From the show of hands it appears

noun opinion in a vote that everyone is in favour of taking a
short break.

strategy plan to make something work We need to come up with

noun a strategy that will allow us to have
meetings less frequently.

unanimous in complete agreement; The vote was unanimous to cut work

adj united in opinion hours on Fridays.

vote to express (the expression of) We need to vote for a new vice

verb or noun an opinion in a group by voice chairperson now that Jerry is retiring.
or hand etc

wrap up finish Let's wrap up here so that we can get

verb back to our desks.

Then, do the practice below. Put your answer through Ms. Forms

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Session 6 – Vocabulary on Business Meeting Activity 1

1. Before we _______ I want to remind everyone to sign the attendance form on the way
out.

a. wrap up
b. strategize
c. recommend

2. We ran out of time and were forced to _______ the meeting.

 a. allocate
 b. address
 c. adjourn

3. If you have a _______ please wait until Marie has finished speaking.

a.  commence
b. comment
c. formality

4. The board members couldn't come to a _______ so they had to hold a vote.
a. grievance
b. designate
c. consensus

5. Markus was away on business, so _______ was assigned.

a. a show of hands

b. an apology
c. a proxy vote

6. In his _______ the chairman thanked everyone for doing such a good job.

a. final agenda
b. last ballot
c. closing remarks

7. I'll _______ as soon as all of the board members take a seat.

a. verify
b. commence
c. brainstorm

8. Since everyone was so _______ we were able to finish the meeting early.

a. participant
b. punctual
c. confidential
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Session 6 – Vocabulary on Business Meeting Activity 1

9. We'll be discussing this year's profits at the _______ next month.

a. AOB
b. AGM
c. GAM

10. At the meeting, the MD put forward _______ to eliminate all part-time positions.

a. an action
b. a caution
c. a motion