Scrum guide · Scaling and learning
Scrum Glossary: 70+ Scrum Terms Defined in Plain English
This Scrum glossary defines the terms you will meet when working with Scrum, in plain English. Official Scrum terms follow the 2020 Scrum Guide; terms marked (practice) are widely used alongside Scrum but are not part of the Scrum Guide.
Key takeaways
- Official Scrum terms come from the 2020 Scrum Guide; many common terms are practices.
- Scrum has three accountabilities, five events, three artifacts and three commitments.
- Story points, velocity, epics and the Definition of Ready are useful practices, not Scrum rules.
- Use the links to go from each term to a full guide.
How to use this glossary
Terms are grouped by theme and listed alphabetically within each group. Follow the links for full guides. If you are new to Scrum, start with what Scrum is, then the Scrum Team roles, Scrum events and Scrum artifacts.
Framework, theory and values
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Adaptation | Adjusting a process or product as soon as possible when inspection shows it has drifted outside acceptable limits; one of the three pillars of empiricism |
| Commitment (value) | Scrum Team members commit to achieving their goals and supporting each other; one of the five Scrum values |
| Courage | Having the courage to do the right thing and work on tough problems; a Scrum value |
| Empiricism | Making decisions based on what is known and observed; see empiricism in Scrum |
| Focus | Concentrating on the work of the Sprint to make the best progress towards goals; a Scrum value |
| Inspection | Frequently and diligently checking artifacts and progress to detect undesirable variances; a pillar of empiricism |
| Lean thinking | Reducing waste and focusing on essentials; the Scrum Guide names it alongside empiricism as a foundation; see Scrum vs Lean |
| Openness | Being open about the work and its challenges; a Scrum value |
| Respect | Respecting each other as capable, independent people; a Scrum value |
| Scrum | A lightweight framework that helps people, teams and organisations generate value through adaptive solutions for complex problems |
| Scrum Guide | The official definition of Scrum, written by Ken Schwaber and Jeff Sutherland; the current version is from November 2020 |
| Scrum pillars | Transparency, inspection and adaptation |
| Scrum values | Commitment, focus, openness, respect and courage |
| Transparency | Making the process and work visible to those doing and receiving it; a pillar of empiricism |
Accountabilities and people
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Accountability | The 2020 Scrum Guide's word for the three roles in the Scrum Team: Product Owner, Scrum Master and Developers |
| Cross-functional | Having all the skills needed to create value each Sprint |
| Developers | Scrum Team members committed to creating any aspect of a usable Increment each Sprint; not limited to software developers |
| Product Owner | Accountable for maximising the value of the product and for effective Product Backlog management; see Product Owner |
| Scrum Master | Accountable for establishing Scrum and for the Scrum Team's effectiveness; see Scrum Master role |
| Scrum Team | A small team of one Scrum Master, one Product Owner and Developers, typically 10 or fewer people, with no sub-teams or hierarchies |
| Self-managing | The team decides internally who does what, when and how; replaced self-organising in the 2020 Scrum Guide |
| Servant leadership | Leading by serving the team and organisation; the 2017 Scrum Guide called the Scrum Master a servant-leader, while the 2020 version says true leaders who serve; see servant leadership |
| Stakeholder | Anyone outside the Scrum Team with an interest in the product, such as customers, users, sponsors and managers |
| Team member | Anyone in the Scrum Team; there are no other titles or sub-teams in Scrum |
Events
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Daily Scrum | A 15-minute event for the Developers to inspect progress towards the Sprint Goal and adapt the Sprint Backlog; see Daily Scrum |
| Event | A formal opportunity to inspect and adapt; Scrum has five: the Sprint, Sprint Planning, Daily Scrum, Sprint Review and Sprint Retrospective |
| Sprint | A fixed-length event of one month or less that contains all the other events; a new Sprint starts immediately after the previous one ends; see what is a Sprint |
| Sprint cancellation | Ending a Sprint early because the Sprint Goal has become obsolete; only the Product Owner can cancel a Sprint |
| Sprint Planning | The event that starts the Sprint, addressing why the Sprint is valuable, what can be Done and how the work will get done; see Sprint Planning |
| Sprint Retrospective | The event that ends the Sprint, used to plan ways to increase quality and effectiveness; see Sprint Retrospective |
| Sprint Review | The event to inspect the outcome of the Sprint with stakeholders and decide future adaptations; see Sprint Review |
| Time-box | The maximum length of an event: for a one-month Sprint, up to 8 hours for Sprint Planning, 4 for the Sprint Review and 3 for the Retrospective; the Daily Scrum is 15 minutes; shorter Sprints usually have shorter events |
Artifacts and commitments
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Artifact | Something that represents work or value; Scrum has three: the Product Backlog, Sprint Backlog and Increment |
| Commitment (artifact) | The element that gives each artifact focus and a measure of progress: Product Goal, Sprint Goal and Definition of Done |
| Definition of Done | A formal description of the state of the Increment when it meets the quality measures required for the product; see Definition of Done |
| Done | Meeting the Definition of Done; work that is not Done cannot be part of an Increment or be shown at the Sprint Review |
| Increment | A concrete, usable stepping stone towards the Product Goal; see Increment |
| Product | A vehicle to deliver value, with a clear boundary, known stakeholders and well-defined users or customers |
| Product Backlog | An emergent, ordered list of what is needed to improve the product; see Product Backlog |
| Product Backlog item (PBI) | A single entry in the Product Backlog, such as a feature, fix, technical improvement or experiment |
| Product Goal | The long-term objective for the Scrum Team and the commitment for the Product Backlog |
| Ready | In the Scrum Guide, items that can be Done within one Sprint are deemed ready for selection in Sprint Planning |
| Refinement | The ongoing activity of breaking down and adding detail to Product Backlog items; see backlog refinement |
| Sprint Backlog | The Sprint Goal, the Product Backlog items selected for the Sprint and the plan for delivering them; see Sprint Backlog |
| Sprint Goal | The single objective for the Sprint and the commitment for the Sprint Backlog |
Estimation, planning and metrics (practices)
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Burndown chart (practice) | A chart showing work remaining over time |
| Burnup chart (practice) | A chart showing work completed over time against a total scope line, so scope changes are visible |
| Capacity (practice) | The amount of work a team can take on in a Sprint, allowing for holidays and other commitments; see Agile capacity planning |
| Cycle time (practice) | The time an item takes from starting work to finishing it; see cycle time |
| Definition of Ready (practice) | An optional checklist some teams use to decide whether an item is clear enough to bring into a Sprint |
| Forecast | A prediction of what may be delivered; the 2011 Scrum Guide replaced the idea of committing to scope with forecasting |
| Planning Poker (practice) | A consensus-based estimation technique in which team members reveal estimate cards at the same time |
| Release plan (practice) | A forecast of when groups of features may be delivered; see Agile release planning |
| Spike (practice) | A time-boxed piece of research or experimentation to reduce uncertainty |
| Story points (practice) | Relative units for estimating the size of backlog items; see story points |
| T-shirt sizing (practice) | Rough relative estimation using sizes such as S, M, L and XL |
| Velocity (practice) | The amount of work, often in story points, a team completes per Sprint; see velocity |
| WIP limit (practice) | A cap on the number of items in progress at once, borrowed from Kanban; see WIP limits |
Backlog items and requirements (practices)
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Acceptance criteria (practice) | Conditions an item must meet to be accepted, specific to that item, unlike the Definition of Done |
| Bug or defect (practice) | A flaw in the product; usually added to the Product Backlog and ordered like any other item |
| Epic (practice) | A large body of work that is split into smaller items; see Agile epics |
| INVEST (practice) | A checklist for good user stories: independent, negotiable, valuable, estimable, small and testable |
| Minimum viable product (MVP) (practice) | The smallest version of a product that lets a team learn from real users |
| Task (practice) | A small unit of work in the Sprint Backlog plan; see epics vs stories vs tasks |
| Technical debt (practice) | The future cost of shortcuts taken in the product; see technical debt |
| User story (practice) | A short description of a need from the user's point of view, often written as "As a... I want... so that..."; see user stories |
| Vertical slice (practice) | An item that cuts through all layers of the product so it is usable on its own |
Team practices and tools
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Impediment | Anything that blocks the team's progress; the Scrum Master causes the removal of impediments |
| Pair programming (practice) | Two developers working together at one workstation |
| Retrospective games (practice) | Structured formats for running a Sprint Retrospective; see retrospective games |
| Scrum board (practice) | A visual board showing the Sprint Backlog and the status of each item; see Scrum boards |
| Swarming (practice) | Several team members working together on one item to finish it faster; see Agile swarming |
| Team working agreement (practice) | Rules the team agrees for how it works together |
| Three questions (practice) | Yesterday, today and impediments; a Daily Scrum format that the 2020 Scrum Guide no longer requires |
Certification terms
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| CSM | Certified ScrumMaster, from Scrum Alliance; see Scrum certifications |
| CSPO | Certified Scrum Product Owner, from Scrum Alliance |
| PSM | Professional Scrum Master, from Scrum.org, at levels I, II and III |
| PSPO | Professional Scrum Product Owner, from Scrum.org, at levels I, II and III |
| SEU | Scrum Education Unit, used to renew Scrum Alliance certifications |
Frequently asked questions
What is a Scrum glossary?
A reference list of the terms used in Scrum with short definitions. This one separates official Scrum Guide terms from common practices.
Where are official Scrum terms defined?
In the Scrum Guide by Ken Schwaber and Jeff Sutherland. The current version was published in November 2020 and is free online.
What does the Scrum term accountabilities refer to?
The three accountabilities of the Scrum Team: Product Owner, Scrum Master and Developers. The 2020 Scrum Guide uses the term in place of roles.
Which Scrum terms name the five events?
The Sprint, Sprint Planning, Daily Scrum, Sprint Review and Sprint Retrospective.
Which Scrum terms describe the artifacts and their commitments?
The Product Backlog with the Product Goal, the Sprint Backlog with the Sprint Goal, and the Increment with the Definition of Done.
Which Scrum terms make up the five values?
Commitment, focus, openness, respect and courage.
Are story points an official Scrum term?
No. Story points, velocity and burndown charts are common practices used with Scrum, but the Scrum Guide does not mention them.
Is Definition of Ready an official Scrum term?
No. It is an optional practice. The Scrum Guide only says items that can be Done within one Sprint are ready for selection in Sprint Planning.
What does the Scrum term Developers mean?
Anyone in the Scrum Team who creates part of a usable Increment each Sprint, including testers, designers, analysts and writers, not only software developers.
Which Scrum terms changed in the 2020 Scrum Guide?
It introduced the Product Goal and the three commitments, replaced roles with accountabilities and the Development Team with Developers, and replaced self-organising with self-managing.
How does the Scrum glossary distinguish Done from accepted?
Done means the work meets the Definition of Done, which applies to every item. Acceptance criteria are specific to one item and are a common practice.
Is backlog grooming still an official Scrum term?
Not any more. Grooming is the older name for refinement; the Scrum Guide now uses refinement.
What does the Scrum term Product Backlog item mean?
A single entry in the Product Backlog, such as a feature, fix or improvement. User stories are one popular way to write them.
How does the Scrum glossary define a time-box?
The maximum length of an event. For a one-month Sprint, Sprint Planning has eight hours, the Sprint Review four and the Sprint Retrospective three; the Daily Scrum is always 15 minutes.
What does the Scrum term self-managing mean?
The Scrum Team decides internally who does what, when and how. The 2020 Scrum Guide uses self-managing in place of the earlier self-organising.
How does the Scrum glossary define cross-functional?
The team has all the skills needed to create value each Sprint, without depending on people outside the team.
What does the Scrum term impediment mean?
Anything that blocks the team's progress. The Scrum Master helps remove impediments the team cannot resolve itself.
How does the Scrum glossary define a burnup chart?
A chart that shows completed work rising towards a total scope line. Unlike a burndown, it shows scope changes clearly.
How does the Scrum glossary define a spike?
A time-boxed piece of research or experimentation to reduce uncertainty before estimating or building an item. It is a common practice, not part of the Scrum Guide.
How does the Scrum glossary define an epic?
A large body of work that is split into smaller backlog items. Epics are not defined in the Scrum Guide. See Agile epics.
What is the difference between the Scrum terms Sprint Goal and Product Goal?
The Sprint Goal is the single objective for one Sprint. The Product Goal is the longer-term objective the team works towards across many Sprints.