51Թ

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View synonyms for

choose

[chooz]

verb (used with object)

chose, chosen , chose, choosing .
  1. to select from a number of possibilities; pick by preference.

    She chose Sunday for her departure.

  2. to prefer or decide (to do something).

    He chose to run for election.

  3. to want; desire.

    I choose moving to the city.

  4. (especially in children's games) to contend with (an opponent) to decide, as by odd or even, who will do something.

    I'll choose you to see who gets to bat first.



verb (used without object)

chose, chosen , chose, choosing .
  1. to make a choice, or select from two or more possibilities.

    Accepted by several colleges, the boy chose carefully.

  2. to be inclined.

    You may stay here, if you choose.

  3. (especially in children's games) to decide, as by means of odd or even, who will do something.

    Let's choose to see who bats first.

verb phrase

    1. to select (players) for a contest or game.

      The kids chose up sides for the game.

    2. to select players for a contest or game.

      We have to choose up before we can play.

choose

/ ʃː /

verb

  1. to select (a person, thing, course of action, etc) from a number of alternatives

  2. (tr; takes a clause as object or an infinitive) to consider it desirable or proper

    I don't choose to read that book

  3. (intr) to like; please

    you may stand if you choose

  4. to be obliged to

    we cannot choose but vote for him

  5. (of two people or objects) almost equal

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Other 51Թ Forms

  • choosable adjective
  • chooser noun
  • prechoose verb (used with object)
  • rechoose verb
  • unchoosable adjective
  • ˈǴDz noun
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51Թ History and Origins

Origin of choose1

First recorded before 1000; Middle English chosen, chēsen, Old English ŧDz; cognate with Gothic kiusan, Old High German kiosan ( German kiesen ); akin to Greek úٳ󲹾 “to enjoy,” Latin ܲ “to taste” ( gusto )
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51Թ History and Origins

Origin of choose1

Old English ceosan; related to Old Norse ō, Old High German kiosan
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Idioms and Phrases

Idioms
  1. cannot choose but, cannot do otherwise than; is or are obliged to.

    He cannot choose but obey.

In addition to the idiom beginning with choose, also see beggars can't be choosers; pick and choose. Also see under choice.
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Synonym Study

Choose, select, pick, elect, prefer indicate a decision that one or more possibilities are to be regarded more highly than others. Choose suggests a decision on one of a number of possibilities because of its apparent superiority: to choose a course of action. Select suggests a choice made for fitness: to select the proper golf club. Pick, an informal word, suggests a selection on personal grounds: to pick a winner. The formal word elect suggests a kind of official action: to elect a representative. Prefer, also formal, emphasizes the desire or liking for one thing more than for another or others: to prefer coffee to tea.
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

United States men's coach Mauricio Pochettino has told his players they cannot pick and choose which games they will be available for.

From

While many Somalis chose to leave, they stayed, driven by a passion to rebuild, despite the fact that an insurgency was being waged by al-Shabab, a group linked to al-Qaeda.

From

A source told the BBC Brooklyn had chosen not to go to the party as his younger brother Romeo was attending with a woman Brooklyn had previously been linked to.

From

The tough choice was the tyres and I think we chose the right ones.

From

One of their neighbours, who did not want to be named, said she had chosen to stay with her daughter that night - just in case.

From

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

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