Agency Dictionary

briefing

nounPronunciation: /ˈbriː.fɪŋ/

In Portuguese: briefing

What does “briefing” mean?

A concise set of instructions or background information provided to guide a project or creative assignment.

Etymology

From the verb brief, "to give someone the essential instructions or information", with the ending -ing. The verb comes from the noun brief, which in law is the summary of a case prepared for a barrister, from Old French bref, from Latin breve, "short document, summary", the neuter of brevis, "short". Briefing as a noun for the act of giving instructions became common in the first half of the 20th century, especially in military use, and passed to politics, the press and business.

Usage note

In English-speaking agencies the document given to a creative team is usually called the brief; the briefing is the meeting or the act of passing on the information.

Synonyms

brief
instructions
guidelines
rundown
orientation

Often confused with

debriefing: A briefing comes before the work and gives the instructions; a debriefing comes after it and collects the account of what happened.

Word family

brief
briefly
brevity
debrief
abbreviate

Usage examples

that is the importance I give to the client, the briefing and the ideas - as if they were the landscape of their dream.
Creative.11 - Thiago Patriota
Art Directors can be designers of any expertise who are responsible for digesting the briefing and getting the creative work done.
Design.3 - The Disciplines of Design
Because when a project lands on a designer’s desk, this person will devour the briefing so that the target audience is identified and the vision of the client is understood.

Concepts

Source editions

Where this entry comes from in the Agency editorial.

Words of the same theme

recipientnoun: The person who receives something. In communication, the one to whom a message is addressed and who interprets it, as opposed to the sender who composes it.
Superfluousadjective: Exceeding what is sufficient, necessary, or useful.
iconnoun: A simplified image that represents a thing by resembling it. In semiotics, a sign that signifies through likeness; in digital interfaces, a small picture that stands for an object or a function.
symbolismnoun: The use of symbols to represent ideas or qualities, and the set of meanings that a form, an image or an object carries beyond its literal sense.
Desaturationnoun: The progressive loss or removal of chromatic intensity, rendering a color closer to a neutral gray.
pain pointnoun: A specific problem, difficulty or frustration that a person experiences when using a product or a service, and that design or marketing sets out to solve.

Also from these editions: terms

Antithesisnoun: A person, thing, or concept that represents the direct or exact opposite of another.
Buttonnoun: A physical or graphical control element that triggers an immediate action or command when pressed or clicked. In software interfaces, buttons communicate system affordances through visual boundaries and labels.
vocationnoun: A strong innate inclination or sense of purpose toward a particular career, craft, or calling.
Consumernoun: An individual or group that acquires, purchases, or consumes physical or commercial goods and services for personal use. In marketing, consumers are studied for purchasing patterns and brand preferences.
Astronautnoun: A person trained and equipped to travel and operate beyond the atmosphere of the Earth. In space exploration, astronauts perform scientific experiments and navigate spacecraft under extreme conditions.
Typographynoun: The art and technique of arranging type to make written language legible, readable, and visually appealing. It encompasses typeface selection, point size, line spacing, tracking, and spatial kerning.
Resiliencenoun: The capacity to withstand or recover quickly from difficulties, tough conditions, or shock.
Screennoun: A flat physical display surface on an electronic device that projects visual images, interfaces, and text to a viewer. It serves as the primary visual output medium for modern personal computers and mobile phones.
wireframenoun: A skeletal visual guide that outlines the basic structure, hierarchy, and functionality of a user interface.
stakeholdernoun: A person or group with an interest in a project or an organization and affected by its results, such as clients, managers, investors or users.
Rendernoun: A finished two-dimensional image or video generated from a three-dimensional mathematical scene by computer software. It synthesizes geometric coordinates, lighting algorithms, textures, and shading into final pixels.
Tangibleadjective: Perceptible by the sense of touch or capable of being physically grasped and measured in concrete physical reality. It distinguishes concrete material products from virtual or intellectual entities.