entscheide

Entscheide is the informal second-person singular imperative form of the German verb entscheiden, meaning to decide or determine. It is used to urge someone to make a choice or to settle a matter. In everyday language it appears in direct address, in dialogues, instructions, or personal advice. The corresponding imperatives for other address levels are entscheidet (ihr) and entscheiden Sie (Sie). Reflexive constructions include Entscheide dich or Entscheidet euch.

Etymology and meaning: Entscheiden is formed with the prefix ent- added to scheiden, which originally meant to separate or cut off. The sense of choosing among options evolved from the idea of separating possibilities to pick one outcome. The imperative decides or commands the listener to perform that act of choosing.

Grammatical notes: As an imperative, entscheide usually stands alone or appears with a reflexive pronoun: Entscheide dich, Entscheide euch. In contrast, the present tense forms are ich entscheide, du entscheidest, er entscheidet, wir entscheiden, ihr entscheidet, Sie entscheiden. The imperative expresses a request or command and can be softened with bitte or durch contexto.

Usage and nuance: The imperative entscheide is common in everyday speech, manuals, and advisory dialogue. It conveys urgency or a direct instruction. It can be softened or made less abrupt with phrases like “bitte entscheide dich” or by presenting alternatives before issuing the command.

Related terms: The noun Entscheidung means a decision, and the verb phrase eine Entscheidung treffen describes the act of making a decision. The verb decision-making process is often contrasted with the noun outcome in usage.