Elijo

Elijo is the first-person singular present indicative form of the Spanish verb elegir, meaning to choose or to elect. It is used to express a current or habitual act of selecting from two or more options.

Etymology and morphology

The verb elegir comes from Latin eligere, formed from ex- “out” and legere “to pick.” In the present tense, elegir is irregular because it undergoes an e-to-i stem change in all forms except nosotros and vosotros: yo elijo, tú eliges, él/ella/usted elige, nosotros elegimos, vosotros elegís, ellos/ellas/ustedes eligen. The infinitive is elegir; the gerund is eligiendo; the past participle is elegido. The present subjunctive is elija, elijas, elija, elijamos, elijáis, elijan. The imperative forms include: tú elige, usted elija, nosotros elijamos, vosotros elegid, ustedes elijan.

Usage

Elijo is used to express a personal choice or decision. It often appears in contexts where an individual weighs options and commits to one. The verb elegir is commonly contrasted with escoger; ambos verbs can be used to mean “to choose,” but elegir may carry a nuance of discernment or a more deliberate selection. In everyday speech, elegir appears in questions like “¿Qué eliges para cenar?” and statements such as “Elijo estudiar antes de salir.”

See also

Related terms include eleccion (connected form eleccion, more common spelling “elección” for the noun) and cognates like elect/elegir in other Romance languages.