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Planning & Processnoun · /ˈdeɪli skrʌm/

daily scrum

In simple English

The daily scrum, also called a standup, is a timeboxed synchronous meeting where each team member gives a brief update. It typically happens at the same time each morning and follows a simple format: what did you finish yesterday, what will you finish today, and what blocks you. The goal is transparency and quick problem-solving, not detailed reporting or status updates for management. In tech companies using Scrum methodology, the daily scrum is mandatory for development teams. It keeps everyone aligned on progress, helps identify blockers early, and enables quick pivots. The Scrum Master or team lead often facilitates it, but the team owns the meeting. Remote teams use video calls; co-located teams gather in person. Daily scrums foster accountability and team cohesion without requiring lengthy preparation. Daily scrums differ from other meetings because they are strictly time-limited, informal, and focused on the team's immediate work. They are not for detailed technical discussions, which belong in separate planning or design sessions. Many teams hold daily scrums even when not formally using Scrum, because the practice is proven effective for coordination.

Understand what a daily scrum is, how it works, and why tech teams use it for coordination and transparency.

At a glanceCEFR B2
Commonness5/5
Versatility4/5
FormalityCasualFormalNeutral
Spoken ↔ WrittenSpokenWrittenBoth
Directness ↔ DiplomaticDirectDiplomaticDirect
RegionUS and UK
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Say it like this

✓We have our daily scrum at 10 AM sharp.
✓The daily scrum kept us aligned on the deadline.
✓I brought up the database issue in the daily scrum.

Real examples

in a standup

"In yesterday's daily scrum, Sarah mentioned she was blocked waiting for the API endpoint from the backend team."

in a team message

"Can everyone join the daily scrum 5 minutes early? We need to discuss the deployment timeline."

in a retrospective

"The team felt our daily scrums were too long, so we agreed to keep updates to one minute each."

Don't say this

Handle with care. Daily scrum is a noun phrase, not a verb. Do not say 'we daily scrum the project' — say 'we discuss it in the daily scrum.' Also, it is a specific meeting type, not a general term for any quick team discussion.

✕We need to daily scrum this bug before shipping.
✓We should discuss this bug in the daily scrum tomorrow.— Daily scrum is a noun (the meeting), not a verb. You do not 'daily scrum' something; you discuss it in a daily scrum.
✕Our daily scrum takes 45 minutes because we dive deep into architecture.
✓Our daily scrum is 15 minutes; we handle architecture questions in a separate meeting.— Daily scrums are timeboxed to 15 minutes max. Detailed technical discussions belong elsewhere, not in the standup.
✕The product manager leads our daily scrum and assigns tasks.
✓Our Scrum Master facilitates the daily scrum so the team can self-organize.— The daily scrum is for the team to update each other, not for a manager to assign work or make decisions.

Other forms

noun

daily scrum

"The daily scrum is at 9 AM."

noun

daily scrums (plural)

"Our daily scrums have been more effective since we started using a shared board."

Often used with

attend the daily scrumto join or participate in the meeting
run a daily scrumto conduct or facilitate the meeting
skip the daily scrumto miss or not attend the meeting
daily scrum blockeran obstacle mentioned during the meeting
daily scrum updatethe brief status report each person gives

Similar words

standupsame meaning; more informal and common in conversation
standup meetingsame as standup; slightly more formal
morning syncbroader term; any short synchronization meeting, not necessarily Scrum-specific

Opposites

async updateemail status report

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Practice

Try it

4 quick exercises

Pick the most natural phrasing

1. You want to tell your colleague about a problem you found. What do you say?

Complete the sentence

2. Every morning we _______ at 9 AM to discuss progress and blockers.

Spot the mistake

3. Which sentence uses daily scrum incorrectly?

Rewrite naturally

4. Rewrite this using daily scrum or related terms: 'Every morning at 10 we have a quick meeting where everyone says what they did yesterday, what they will do today, and what problems they have.'

Questions

Quick poll

Have you said "daily scrum" in a standup this week?

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