debrief
verb
de·brief (ˌ)dē-ˈbrēf 
debriefed; debriefing; debriefs
transitive verb
1
: to interrogate (someone, such as a pilot) usually upon return (as from a mission) in order to obtain useful information
The hostages were later debriefed by police.
2
: to carefully review upon completion
debrief the flight
intransitive verb
: to be interrogated for useful information following a mission, experience, etc. : to be debriefed
After each mission, … the pilots land, disarm and roll into the fuel pit. They spend another hour debriefing with Intelligence …
Maria Wilhelm
Maria Wilhelm
Example Sentences
Police debriefed the hostages upon their return. The pilot was debriefed after his flight.
Recent Examples on the Web After some consolation from her friends, Sydney agrees to debrief with Isaiah. Kimi Robinson, The Arizona Republic, 16 Aug. 2022 James meets with other professional cuddlers each month to debrief. Antonia Hitchens, The New Yorker, 8 Aug. 2022 Develop a formal process to debrief clients on every project to track successes and areas for improvement. Patrick Stokes, Forbes, 4 Aug. 2022 Leadership should debrief and learn from this to clarify what worked and what didn’t. Expert Panel®, Forbes, 9 June 2022 An hour and twenty minutes later, the three of us trooped back into the office to debrief. Alexandra Schwartz, The New Yorker, 16 May 2022 One of his favorite stories involved a 1978 assignment to protect and debrief a Soviet defector, Arkady N. Schevchenko, moving him undercover from his apartment in New York to the Virginia suburbs. New York Times, 19 Feb. 2022 The battalion stopped in Texas for a week to debrief, spending one week there before finally arriving in Arizona, according to a senior service member. Adam Terro, The Arizona Republic, 19 Feb. 2022 The best CEOs reach out ahead of board meetings to discuss the upcoming agenda and follow up after to debrief to discuss additional insights. Sean Cantwell, Forbes, 1 Nov. 2021 See More
Kimi Robinson, The Arizona Republic, 16 Aug. 2022 James meets with other professional cuddlers each month to debrief. Antonia Hitchens, The New Yorker, 8 Aug. 2022 Develop a formal process to debrief clients on every project to track successes and areas for improvement. Patrick Stokes, Forbes, 4 Aug. 2022 Leadership should debrief and learn from this to clarify what worked and what didn’t. Expert Panel®, Forbes, 9 June 2022 An hour and twenty minutes later, the three of us trooped back into the office to debrief. Alexandra Schwartz, The New Yorker, 16 May 2022 One of his favorite stories involved a 1978 assignment to protect and debrief a Soviet defector, Arkady N. Schevchenko, moving him undercover from his apartment in New York to the Virginia suburbs. New York Times, 19 Feb. 2022 The battalion stopped in Texas for a week to debrief, spending one week there before finally arriving in Arizona, according to a senior service member. Adam Terro, The Arizona Republic, 19 Feb. 2022 The best CEOs reach out ahead of board meetings to discuss the upcoming agenda and follow up after to debrief to discuss additional insights. Sean Cantwell, Forbes, 1 Nov. 2021 See More Word History
First Known Use
1944, in the meaning defined at sense 1
debrief
verb
as in to interrogate
to officially ask (someone) about a job that has been done or about an experience Police debriefed the hostages upon their return. The pilot was debriefed after his flight. Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- interrogate
- question
- examine
- quiz
- barrage
- query
- bomb
- grill
- bombard
- pump
- cross-examine
- harass
- pester
- catechize
- flood
- annoy
- hound
- inundate