decide (English)

Where does "decide" come from?

The English verb 'decide' traces its ancestry through Middle English 'deciden'[1] and Old French 'decider'[1] back to Latin 'dēcīdere'[1], meaning to cut off or decide[1]. This Latin term combined 'dē', meaning down from, with 'caedō', meaning to cut[1]. The deeper origins reach Proto-Italic '*kaidō'[5] and ultimately Proto-Indo-European '*kh₂eyd-'[3], carrying the core sense of to cut or hew[5][6].

Open questions

The Proto-Indo-European root is possibly derived from another root with an unknown suffix, or reanalyzed from a combination involving another root meaning to cut or sever. [3]

Full etymology tree

decide (English), 'To resolve (a contest, problem, dispute, etc.); to choose, determine, or settle.'
- inherited deciden (Middle English), 'To make a ruling or judgement; to decide an issue or matter of discontent.'
  - borrowed decider (Old French)
    - inherited decidere (Latin), 'third-person plural perfect active indicative of dēcidō'
      - derived decido (Latin), 'to cut off or away; clip; reduce, diminish'
        compound de- (Latin), 'of; from'
        derived de (Latin), 'of; concerning; about'
        inherited *dē (Proto-Italic)
        inherited *déh₁ (Proto-Indo-European), 'toward'
        compound *de (Proto-Indo-European), 'to, towards'
        suffix *-h₁ (Proto-Indo-European), 'Adverbial suffix with instrumental meaning'
        compound caedo (Latin), 'to cut, hew, fell'
        inherited *kaidō (Proto-Italic), 'to cut, hew, fell'
        inherited *keh₂id- (Proto-Indo-European)

Ancestors

*kh₂eyd- (Proto-Indo-European)
deciden (Middle English)
decidere (Latin)

Descendants and derived words

decidability (English)
decidable (English)
decidement (English)
decide on (English)
decide upon (English)
decidophobia (English)
misdecide (English)
predecide (English)
redecide (English)
undecide (English)

Sources

Updated September 2026

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Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris