conference

American  

[kon-fer-uhns, -fruhns] / ˈkɒn fər əns, -frəns /

noun

1. a meeting for consultation or discussion.

   a conference between a student and his adviser.

   Synonyms:

   colloquium, parley

2. the act of conferring or consulting together; consultation, especially on an important or serious matter.

3. Government. a meeting, as of various committees, to settle disagreements between the two branches of the legislature.

4. an association of athletic teams; league.

   an intercollegiate conference.

5. Ecclesiastical.

   1. an official assembly of clergy or of clergy and laity, customary in many Christian denominations.

   2. a group of churches whose representatives regularly meet in such an assembly.

---

verb (used without object)

conferenced, conferencing

1. to hold or participate in a conference or series of conferences.

conference British  

/ ˈkɒnfərəns, -frəns, ˌkɒnfəˈrɛnʃəl /

noun

1. a meeting for consultation, exchange of information, or discussion, esp one with a formal agenda

2. a formal meeting of two or more states, political groups, etc, esp to discuss differences or formulate common policy

3. an assembly of the clergy or of clergy and laity of any of certain Protestant Christian Churches acting as representatives of their denomination

   the Methodist conference

4. sport a league or division of clubs or teams

5. rare an act of bestowal

---

Related Words

See convention.

Other Word Forms

• conferential adjective
• preconference noun
• subconference noun
• subconferential adjective

Etymology

Origin of conference

From the Medieval Latin word conferentia, dating back to 1530–40. See confer, -ence

Explanation

A conference is a formal get-together where people talk (or "confer") about a chosen topic, like when your office holds a conference to talk about the problem of snoring during meetings. A conference can also be a public meeting arranged for discussion, such as a press conference or a national conference for a particular group. For example, you may no longer have much interest in 18th-century coins, but you still attend the annual conference for coin collectors because it is always held at a hotel in Aruba. A conference can also refer to a sports league, such as for baseball or football.

Example Sentences

The conference room table was now covered in stacks of the same green T-shirt Nichols had worn at City Hall.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 18, 2026

Disney showcased the first proper trailer for the long-awaited next Avengers film, Avengers: Doomsday, as the conference closed on Thursday.

From BBC • Apr. 17, 2026

“Price increases in transport costs will hurt everyone. There are no winners,” he said at the Semafor World Economy conference.

From Barron's • Apr. 17, 2026

Speaking at a conference organized by the media outlet Semafor, Lutnick also harshly criticized Canada’s approach to the trade talks with Washington.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026

Deciding how many of them should be in conference room B at three o’clock had sparked their longest and bitterest debate.

From "Found" by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Related Words

• consultation
• discussion
• forum
• interview
• meeting
• seminar
• symposium
• talk