Researching of adsorbent materials is a hot topic in the fields of uranium mining, processing and treatment of uranium-containing wastewater from spent fuel reprocessing and uranium extraction from seawater. The binding of adsorbent materials to uranium is mainly via the coordination of functional groups, among which the amidoxime groups exhibit excellent adsorption selectivity due to their specific interaction with uranium. In this paper, we summarize the preparation methods of amidoxime groups, especially the cyano-hydroxylamine method is introduced in detail. The progress of the present research on the mono-functional adsorption materials of amidoxime is elaborated from the perspective of the morphology and function of adsorbent materials, while the bifunctional synergistic adsorption of -NH₂ and -AO or -COOH and -AO is introduced, and the coordination mechanism of amidoxime groups with uranium is briefly analyzed, and finally, trends are prospected in view of the selection of substrate materials, preparation methods and special functionalities of amidoxime-based adsorbent materials.