The National Weather Service's Climate Prediction Center is the government's official source for forecasts that begin at day eight and extend 12 months into the future. Much of the terminology used in describing the products, such as "climate outlooks", "medium range", "long range", "probability of exceedance", "above normal", "below normal", and "equal chances of each category", can be confusing. The need to ensure an adequate understanding of the specialized climate forecast terminology for NWS climate services partners such as the media is briefly discussed in this introduction to the workshop.