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Choose vs. Decide: Know the Difference

Shumaila Saeed
By Shumaila Saeed || Updated on December 25, 2023
Choose involves selecting from options, while decide entails making a conclusion or resolution, often after consideration.
Choose vs. Decide

Key Differences

Choose implies the act of picking or selecting among options or alternatives. It often involves preference or inclination. Decide goes beyond selection; it involves making a judgment or arriving at a conclusion, often after deliberation.
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Shumaila Saeed
Nov 27, 2023
When you choose, you might be faced with multiple options and select one based on personal preference, taste, or desire. In contrast, when you decide on something, it often includes weighing factors, considering consequences, and making an informed judgment.
Shumaila Saeed
Shumaila Saeed
Nov 27, 2023
Choose can be as simple as picking a color for a dress or a meal from a menu, based more on personal preference. Decide often carries more weight, like deciding on a career path or a significant investment, where deliberation and decision-making are key.
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Shumaila Saeed
Nov 27, 2023
In decision-making processes, choosing is a part of the broader act of deciding. First, you might decide to take a course of action, and then choose the specifics within that course. For instance, deciding to go on vacation, and then choosing the destination.
Shumaila Saeed
Shumaila Saeed
Nov 27, 2023
The act of choosing can be instantaneous and sometimes frivolous. However, to decide usually involves a more prolonged thought process, considering various aspects and potential outcomes of the choice.
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Shumaila Saeed
Nov 27, 2023
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Comparison Chart

Basic Definition

Selecting from options
Concluding or resolving after consideration
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Nov 27, 2023

Nature

Often based on preference or taste
Involves judgment and deliberation
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Nov 27, 2023

Examples

Picking a color, selecting a meal
Deciding on a career, making an investment
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Role in Decision-Making

Part of the decision-making process
The broader act encompassing choosing
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Depth

Can be instantaneous or frivolous
Involves prolonged thought and weighing options
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Choose and Decide Definitions

Choose

The act of making a choice.
You can choose any dessert from the menu.
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Nov 27, 2023

Decide

To make a conclusion or resolution.
After much thought, she decided to move to New York.
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Shumaila Saeed
Nov 27, 2023

Choose

To pick out or select someone or something.
The director will choose the lead actor tomorrow.
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Shumaila Saeed
Nov 27, 2023

Decide

Arriving at a definite conclusion.
They must decide soon to meet the deadline.
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Nov 27, 2023

Choose

Opting for a preference or desire.
He chose the blue shirt for the party.
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Decide

To settle a question or dispute.
The judge will decide the case today.
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Choose

To select from a number of possible alternatives; decide on and pick out
Which book did you choose at the library?.
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Oct 19, 2023

Decide

To make up one's mind.
He finally decided on his major in college.
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Shumaila Saeed
Nov 27, 2023

Choose

To prefer above others
Chooses the supermarket over the neighborhood grocery store.
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Shumaila Saeed
Oct 19, 2023

Decide

To reach a conclusion or form a judgment or opinion about (something) by reasoning or consideration
Decide what to do.
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Oct 19, 2023

Choose

To determine or decide
Chose to fly rather than drive.
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Oct 19, 2023

Decide

To cause to make or reach a decision
"The presence of so many witnesses decided him at once to flee" (Robert Louis Stevenson).
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Oct 19, 2023

Choose

To make a choice; make a selection
Was used to doing as she chose.
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Shumaila Saeed
Oct 19, 2023

Decide

To settle conclusively all contention or uncertainty about
Decide a case.
Decided the dispute in favor of the workers.
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Oct 19, 2023

Choose

To pick; to make the choice of; to select.
I chose a nice ripe apple from the fruit bowl.
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Oct 19, 2023

Decide

To influence or determine the outcome of
A few votes decided the election.
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Oct 19, 2023

Choose

To elect.
He was chosen as president in 1990.
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Oct 19, 2023

Decide

To pronounce a judgment; announce a verdict.
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Shumaila Saeed
Oct 19, 2023

Choose

To decide to act in a certain way.
I chose to walk to work today.
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Oct 19, 2023

Decide

To reach a decision; make up one's mind.
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Oct 19, 2023

Choose

To prefer; to wish; to desire.
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Oct 19, 2023

Decide

(ambitransitive) to resolve (a contest, problem, dispute, etc.); to choose, determine, or settle
The election will be decided on foreign policies.
We must decide our next move.
Her last-minute goal decided the game.
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Oct 19, 2023

Choose

(mathematics) The binomial coefficient of the previous and following number.
The number of distinct subsets of size k from a set of size n is \tbinom nk or "n choose k".
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Decide

(intransitive) to make a judgment, especially after deliberation
You must decide between good and evil.
I have decided that it is healthier to walk to work.
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Oct 19, 2023

Choose

The act of choosing; selection.
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Shumaila Saeed
Oct 19, 2023

Decide

(transitive) to cause someone to come to a decision
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Shumaila Saeed
Oct 19, 2023

Choose

The power, right, or privilege of choosing; election.
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Shumaila Saeed
Oct 19, 2023

Decide

(obsolete) to cut off; to separate
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Shumaila Saeed
Oct 19, 2023

Choose

To make choice of; to select; to take by way of preference from two or more objects offered; to elect; as, to choose the least of two evils.
Choose me for a humble friend.
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Shumaila Saeed
Oct 19, 2023

Decide

To cut off; to separate.
Our seat denies us traffic here;The sea, too near, decides us from the rest.
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Shumaila Saeed
Oct 19, 2023

Choose

To wish; to desire; to prefer.
The landlady now returned to know if we did not choose a more genteel apartment.
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Shumaila Saeed
Oct 19, 2023

Decide

To bring to a termination, as a question, controversy, struggle, by giving the victory to one side or party; to render judgment concerning; to determine; to settle.
So shall thy judgment be; thyself hast decided it.
The quarrel toucheth none but us alone;Betwixt ourselves let us decide it then.
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Shumaila Saeed
Oct 19, 2023

Choose

To make a selection; to decide.
They had only to choose between implicit obedience and open rebellion.
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Oct 19, 2023

Decide

To determine; to form a definite opinion; to come to a conclusion; to give decision; as, the court decided in favor of the defendant.
Who shall decide, when doctors disagree?
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Oct 19, 2023

Choose

To do otherwise.
Thou canst not choose but know who I am.
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Oct 19, 2023

Decide

Reach, make, or come to a decision about something;
We finally decided after lengthy deliberations
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Oct 19, 2023

Choose

Pick out, select, or choose from a number of alternatives;
Take any one of these cards
Choose a good husband for your daughter
She selected a pair of shoes from among the dozen the salesgirl had shown her
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Shumaila Saeed
Oct 19, 2023

Decide

Bring to an end; settle conclusively;
The case was decided
The judge decided the case in favor of the plaintiff
The father adjudicated when the sons were quarreling over their inheritance
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Shumaila Saeed
Oct 19, 2023

Choose

Select as an alternative; choose instead; prefer as an alternative;
I always choose the fish over the meat courses in this restaurant
She opted for the job on the East coast
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Shumaila Saeed
Oct 19, 2023

Decide

Cause to decide;
This new development finally decided me!
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Shumaila Saeed
Oct 19, 2023

Choose

See fit or proper to act in a certain way; decide to act in a certain way;
She chose not to attend classes and now she failed the exam
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Oct 19, 2023

Decide

Influence or determine;
The vote in New Hampshire often decides the outcome of the Presidential election
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Shumaila Saeed
Oct 19, 2023

Choose

To select from a number of possibilities.
She had to choose between tea and coffee.
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Shumaila Saeed
Nov 27, 2023

Decide

Resolution after deliberation.
She decided to start her own business after careful planning.
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Nov 27, 2023

Choose

Making a selection from alternatives.
Choose wisely when it comes to your friends.
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Nov 27, 2023

Repeatedly Asked Queries

What does decide mean?

To conclude, make a resolution, or settle a matter after consideration.
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Shumaila Saeed
Nov 27, 2023

Does deciding require more information?

Typically, yes, as it usually involves weighing various factors and information.
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Shumaila Saeed
Nov 27, 2023

Are both terms applicable in everyday life?

Yes, we choose and decide on various things daily, from mundane to significant.
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Nov 27, 2023

What does it mean to choose?

To select from a range of options or possibilities.
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Nov 27, 2023

How is deciding different in importance?

Deciding often carries more weight and involves considering consequences.
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Nov 27, 2023

Is choosing more about personal preference?

Generally, yes, choosing often reflects personal preference or taste.
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Shumaila Saeed
Nov 27, 2023

Can choose and decide be used interchangeably?

Not always, as decide often involves more deliberation than choose.
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Nov 27, 2023

Is choosing always a part of deciding?

Yes, choosing is often a component of the decision-making process.
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Nov 27, 2023

Is deciding a longer process?

Often, deciding involves a more prolonged process of thought and consideration.
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Nov 27, 2023

Do businesses use both terms in strategic planning?

Yes, businesses choose specific strategies and decide on broader business goals.
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Shumaila Saeed
Nov 27, 2023

Do external factors play a role in deciding?

Yes, external factors like resources, constraints, and information often influence decisions.
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Shumaila Saeed
Nov 27, 2023

Are decisions more binding?

Decisions, especially significant ones, can be more binding and harder to reverse.
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Shumaila Saeed
Nov 27, 2023

Can choosing be impulsive?

Yes, choosing can sometimes be done impulsively or without much thought.
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Nov 27, 2023

Can peer pressure affect choosing?

Yes, social influences can impact personal choices.
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Nov 27, 2023

Can you decide without choosing?

In some contexts, yes, as deciding can be about forming an opinion without necessarily making a choice.
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Shumaila Saeed
Nov 27, 2023

Can you reverse a choice easily?

It depends on the context, but choices are often more flexible than decisions.
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Shumaila Saeed
Nov 27, 2023

How do experts approach choosing and deciding?

Experts often use data, experience, and analysis in both choosing and deciding.
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Shumaila Saeed
Nov 27, 2023

Can emotions affect choosing?

Yes, personal preferences and emotions can significantly influence choosing.
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Shumaila Saeed
Nov 27, 2023

Is indecisiveness related more to choosing or deciding?

Indecisiveness can affect both, but it's more prominently linked to the decision-making process.
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Shumaila Saeed
Nov 27, 2023

Can you choose not to decide?

Yes, choosing not to decide is in itself a decision, often to maintain the status quo.
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Shumaila Saeed
Nov 27, 2023

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About Author
Shumaila Saeed
Written by
Shumaila Saeed
Shumaila Saeed, an expert content creator with 6 years of experience, specializes in distilling complex topics into easily digestible comparisons, shining a light on the nuances that both inform and educate readers with clarity and accuracy.

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