Making laws
motion to table
A motion to set something aside permanently. It is not debatable and needs only a simple majority, so it is the fastest way to kill an amendment without voting on it directly.
In full
Tabling disposes of a pending question without deciding it on the merits. Because the motion is not debatable and cannot itself be amended, a majority can use it to end an inconvenient debate immediately. A senator who votes to table a colleague's amendment has killed it, which is why tallies that look purely procedural are often the substantive vote.
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Browse every term in the glossary, or see the vocabulary in motion in the How government works walkthroughs.
A plain-language explanation for civic education, not legal advice. When in doubt, the official source named above controls.