choose

verb

\ ˈchüz

chose\ˈchōz

\; chosen\ˈchō-zᵊn

\; choosing\ˈchü-ziŋ

Definition of choose

transitive verb

1a : to select freely and after consideration choose a career

b : to decide on especially by vote : elect chose her as captain

2a : to have a preference for choose one car over another

b : decide chose to go by train

intransitive verb

1 : to make a selection finding it hard to choose

2 : to take an alternative —used after cannot and usually followed by but when earth is so kind, men cannot choose but be happy —J. A. Froude

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Choose the Right Synonym for choose

choose, elect, and select mean to decide upon one possibility from among several. choose is used for making a decision after careful thought. She chose to follow the right course. elect may be used for the deliberate picking of one thing over another. Voters elect one candidate for president. select is used when there are many things from which to choose. Customers may select from a variety of goods.

Examples of choose in a Sentence

Each year thousands of college students choose volunteer-service trips over beach bumming during their spring breaks and summer vacations. —Edward M. Kennedy, Time, 22 Sept. 2008 I had been invited to choose certain things that I might want from the house, but although there were indeed a couple of things that I would have liked, I was withheld from making the trip … —Alice Adams, "Why I Write," in The Story and Its Writer, edited by Ann Charters, 1987 … as an instructor at New York University he chose to live by himself in lodgings that for the time must have been very expensive … —William Styron, This Quiet Dust and Other Writings, (l953) 1982 Any summary I might try to write for the rest of the novel would be worthless and I don't choose to waste my time at it. —Flannery O'Connor, The Habit of Being, 1979 The political party chose a leader. They chose her as the team captain. We've chosen a different time to go. He was chosen because he's qualified for the job. She was chosen from a long list of people. He chose his words carefully. Which shirt would you choose? How do I choose when there's so much available? Let everyone choose for themselves. You can choose from among a number of alternatives.

Recent Examples on the Web

Ball, who was chosen by the Lakers with the second overall pick in last year’s draft, averaged 10.2 points and 7.2 assists during his first NBA season. — BostonGlobe.com, "Knee surgery scheduled for Lonzo Ball," 14 July 2018 Reuters reported in 2009, adding that its chief is chosen by the country’s president. — Madeline Farber, Fox News, "What's the GRU, Russia's military intelligence agency? 3 things to know," 13 July 2018 In fact, two of the primary plaintiffs chosen by the ACLU for their class-action suit against Immigration and Customs Enforcement are also of Congolese heritage: a mother and daughter who came to the U.S. seeking asylum last year. — Shamira Ibrahim, Daily Intelligencer, "Patricia Okoumou and the Threat to Black Immigrants," 13 July 2018 Socrates Café Facilitated discussions open to everyone who wishes to freely discuss a question which is chosen by vote. — Mary Lou Cruz, Sun-Sentinel.com, "Boca Raton area events July 18-28," 13 July 2018 The paint scheme for the new locomotives and refurbished cars will be chosen by officials working with district residents and train riders. — Phil Diehl, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Coaster train to get five new locomotives," 12 July 2018 Bone up on the shifting sands in global commerce with these key metrics, as chosen by raw-material dealers and strategists. — Fortune, "Charting the Trade-War Fallout Through Commodities," 12 July 2018 The 2018 All Harford girls track and field team chosen by The Aegis. — Bill Blewett, The Aegis, "Harford triathletes fare well at Diamond in the Rough," 12 July 2018 When Trump traveled to Indianapolis last fall to promote his plans to overhaul the tax code, Tom was one of three Indiana businessmen chosen by the White House to help make the case. — Maureen Groppe, Indianapolis Star, "Indiana agribusinessman Kip Tom tapped by Trump for food ambassador job," 11 July 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'choose.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.