Meeting minutes in English: template, phrases and vocabulary
The vocabulary, the phrases and a ready-to-copy template for writing meeting minutes in English, with the false friends to avoid.
- 1In English, the meeting write-up is called 'the minutes', and the tasks are 'action items'.
- 2The structure is the same as in any language: only the vocabulary changes, not the logic.
- 3A few false friends trip up speakers of Romance languages: 'assist', 'actual', 'agenda'.
- 4A ready-to-copy template saves you from re-translating at every meeting.
You ran the meeting in English, now you have to write it up in the same language. Good news: the structure does not change, it is the vocabulary that does. Once you have the right words in mind and a template on hand, the exercise takes five minutes.
If you want the full method and template first, they are in our guides how to write meeting minutes and meeting minutes templates to copy.
The vocabulary of minutes in English
The word to know: in English, the written record of a meeting is the minutes (always plural). The rest follows:
- Agenda: the list of topics to cover.
- Attendees / present: the people who took part.
- Apologies: people who could not attend (common in UK usage).
- Decisions: what was settled.
- Action items: the tasks that were decided.
- Owner: the person responsible for an action.
- Due date / deadline: when it must be done.
- AOB (any other business): miscellaneous points at the end.
- Postponed: deferred to a later meeting.
- Next meeting: the follow-up date.
The template to copy
Minutes, [meeting topic]
Date: [dd/mm/yyyy] | Duration: [xx min]
Attendees: [names] | Apologies: [names]
Decisions
- [Decision]
Action items
- [Action]: [owner], due [date]
Open points (AOB)
- [Point to revisit]
Next meeting: [date]English labels, content in whatever language suits you: many cross-language teams fill an English skeleton with notes in their own language, then translate only the decisions they need to circulate.
The phrases for writing them up
Minutes in English happily use the passive voice and the past tense, for a neutral, factual tone.
- “It was agreed that…” : records a decision without naming who pushed for it.
- “[Name] raised the issue of…” : attributes a topic, not an opinion.
- “The team agreed to…” : a collective decision.
- “Action: [name] to send the report by Friday.” : the standard action format.
- “This point was postponed to the next meeting.” : defers an open item.
For actions, English has a very efficient turn of phrase: “[Owner] to [verb] by [date]”. Short, clear, no ambiguity about “who does what by when”.
The false friends to avoid
Three classic traps for speakers of Romance languages (French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese):
- “Assist” does not mean “attend”. To be present at a meeting is to attend a meeting. To assist means to help.
- “Actual” does not mean “current”. Actual means real, effective. Current is current.
- “Agenda” is not a diary. In English, agenda means the list of topics, not your appointment book (diary in the UK, calendar in the US).
And to save time
Keeping the minutes while taking part, in English no less, is the classic double load. Soufflia helps you live to follow the thread of the meeting, and automatic generation of the minutes and actions is on its roadmap, so the record writes itself while you speak.
Discover Soufflia
Live help, local-first and GDPR-compliant. Automatic minutes on the roadmap.
About Claire Dubois
For ten years I've coached French executives and salespeople who have to perform in English. Their level is almost never the real problem: it's the live mental load. I write concrete methods, ready-to-use phrasings and ways to keep your cool when an objection lands in English.
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