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Business English vocabulary · Meetings

Table a discussion

Meaning in business english, with examples

phraseAdvanced term

In business english, table a discussion means: To postpone discussing a topic until later, usually because time is short or more information is needed.

In Turkish: bir konuyu ileri bir tarihte görüşmek üzere ertelemek

How it is used

In American business English, this usually means postpone a discussion. British English commonly uses table for presenting a matter for consideration.

Example sentences

  1. Given the missing sales figures, the chair decided to table the discussion until finance sent the revised report.

    Here, the phrase means delaying the topic, not starting it, because the team lacks necessary data.

  2. We tabled the discussion on office space and used the remaining time to confirm next quarter's hiring plan.

    In this meeting example, the term shows a conscious choice to move one agenda item to a later moment.

Common collocations

  • table a discussion until later
  • table a discussion for next week
  • table the discussion temporarily
  • agendaA list of the topics that will be discussed in a meeting, usually in the order they will be covered and shared with attendees beforehand.
  • minutesThe official written record of a meeting, listing who attended, what was discussed, what was decided and who will do what next.

More terms: Meetings

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