different between decide vs purpose

English

Etymology

From Middle English deciden, from Old French decider, from Latin d?c?dere, infinitive of d?c?d? (“cut off, decide”), from d? (“down from”) + caed? (“cut”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /d??sa?d/

Verb

decide (third-person singular simple present decides, present participle deciding, simple past and past participle decided)

1. (transitive, intransitive) to resolve (a contest, problem, dispute, etc.); to choose, determine, or settle
2. (intransitive) to make a judgment, especially after deliberation

   • So shall thy judgment be; thyself hast decided it.

3. (transitive) to cause someone to come to a decision
   • 1920, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, "The Adventure of the Three Gables" (Norton edition, 2005, page 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.

4. (obsolete) to cut off; to separate
   • 1642, Thomas Fuller, The Holy State and the Profane State

     Our 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 Appendix:English catenative verbs

Synonyms

• make up one's mind
• choose
• determine
• pick

Related terms

Translations

Anagrams

• de-iced, deiced

Asturian

Verb

decide

1. third-person singular present indicative of decidir

Esperanto

Etymology

From decidi +? -e.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /de?t?side/
• Rhymes: -ide

Adverb

decide

1. decisively
2. decidedly

Interlingua

Verb

decide

1. present of decider
2. imperative of decider

Italian

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -ide

Verb

decide

1. third-person singular present indicative of decidere

Anagrams

• decedi

Latin

Verb

d?c?de

1. second-person singular present active imperative of d?c?d?

Middle English

Verb

decide

1. Alternative form of deciden

Portuguese

Verb

decide

1. third-person singular (ele and ela, also used with você and others) present indicative of decidir
2. second-person singular (tu, sometimes used with você) affirmative imperative of decidir

Romanian

Etymology

From French décider, from Latin d?c?d?.

Verb

a decide (third-person singular present decide, past participle decis) 3rd conj.

1. to decide

   Synonym: hot?rî

Conjugation

Related terms

• decizie

Spanish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Spain) /de??ide/, [d?e??i.ð?e]
• IPA^(key): (Latin America) /de?side/, [d?e?si.ð?e]

Verb

decide

1. Informal second-person singular (tú) affirmative imperative form of decidir.
2. Formal second-person singular (usted) present indicative form of decidir.
3. Third-person singular (él, ella, also used with usted^?) present indicative form of decidir.

English

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /?p?p?s/
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /?p??p?s/
• Rhymes: -??(?)p?s

Etymology 1

From Middle English purpos, from Old French purposer (“to propose”), from Latin pr? (“forth”) + pono, hence Latin propono, proponere, with conjugation altered based on poser.

Noun

purpose (countable and uncountable, plural purposes)

1. An objective to be reached; a target; an aim; a goal.
2. A result that is desired; an intention.
3. The act of intending to do something; resolution; determination.
   • 2013, Phil McNulty, "[2]", BBC Sport, 1 September 2013:

     United began with more purpose in the early phase of the second half and Liverpool were grateful for Glen Johnson's crucial block from Young's goalbound shot.
4. The subject of discourse; the point at issue.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Spenser to this entry?)

5. The reason for which something is done, or the reason it is done in a particular way.

6. (obsolete) Instance; example.

Synonyms

• (target): aim, goal, object, target; See also Thesaurus:goal
• (intention): aim, plan, intention; See also Thesaurus:intention
• (determination): determination, intention, resolution
• (subject of discourse): matter, subject, topic
• (reason for doing something): reason

Hyponyms

• common purpose
• metapurpose

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

Etymology 2

From Middle English purposen, from Old French purposer (“to propose”).

Verb

purpose (third-person singular simple present purposes, present participle purposing, simple past and past participle purposed)

1. (transitive) To have set as one's purpose; resolve to accomplish; intend; plan.
2. (transitive, passive) To design for some purpose. (Can we add an example for this sense?)
3. (obsolete, intransitive) To discourse.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Edmund Spenser to this entry?)

Derived terms

• purposed
• purposer
• purposive
• on purpose

Synonyms

• (have set as one's purpose): aim, intend, mean, plan, set out
• (designed for some purpose): intended

Translations

References

• “purpose” in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.
• “purpose”, in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 4th edition, Boston, Mass.: Houghton Mifflin, 2000, ?ISBN
• "purpose" in WordNet 2.0, Princeton University, 2003.