Decide
Pronunciation
- IPA: /dɪˈsaɪd/
Origin
From Old French decider, from Latin dēcīdere, infintive of dēcīdŠ("cut off, decide"), from dē ("down from") + caedŠ("cut").
Full definition of decide
Verb
- (transitive) 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.
- ShakespeareThe quarrel toucheth none but us alone;
Betwixt ourselves let us decide it then. - (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.
- Bible, 1 Kings xx. 40So shall thy judgment be; thyself hast decided it.
- (transitive) To cause someone to come to a decision.
- 1920, Arthur_Conan_Doyle, "The Adventure of the Three Gables" (Norton edition, 2005, p. 1537),It decides me to look into the matter, for if it is worth anyone's while to take so much trouble, there must be something in it.
- (obsolete) To cut off; to separate.
- FullerOur seat denies us traffic here;
The sea, too near, decides us from the rest.
Usage notes
This is a catenative verb that takes the to infinitive. See