VocabauraVOCABAURA

choose

verb

Simple meaning

To pick one thing rather than another.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

chooz
US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈtʃuz

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

verb

  1. Pick out, select, or choose from a number of alternatives

  2. To pick; to make the choice of; to select.

  3. To decide to act in a certain way.

  4. To elect.

  5. To prefer; to wish; to desire.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
A1 · Beginner (estimated)
Frequency
Very Common
Typical Use
Everyday English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: Pick out, select, or choose from a number of alternatives

Used this way, choose is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Emotional tone
Neutral
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Not strongly marked
How common
Moderately common
Connotation
No strong connotation
Usage feel
Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use choose

  • “I always choose the fish over the meat courses in this restaurant.”verb

Share your sentence

Write your own example sentence using “choose”. We review each one before it appears.

Similar Words, What’s the Difference?

Close in meaning, but not always interchangeable.

  • take

    To select or choose; to pick.

  • select

    Pick out, select, or choose from a number of alternatives.

Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Inflected forms

Grammatical variations of the same word.

  • choosernounInflected form

    A person who chooses or selects out.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

  • choose upverbCompound term

    Form sides, as for a game.

More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin

Synonyms

Sense: pick out or select

takeselect

Use This Word

See how this word sounds in a real sentence.

Ask Vocabaura

Understand the word your way.

What Does It Mean Here?

Words can change meaning depending on context.

Use it yourself

Knowing “choose” starts when you use it. Pick a next step, all free.

Know the meaning? Practice using it in a real situation, free, no credits.

Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.