Making Decisions ESL Vocabulary Worksheet

All 36 words

Key words 12

advantage A feature that gives a better chance of success. "One advantage of the bus is the low fare."
consequence A result that follows from an action or a choice. "Missing the bus was the consequence of waking up late."
decision The choice a person makes in the end. "Moving to a new city was a big decision."
disadvantage A thing that holds you back or works against you. "One disadvantage of the bus is the long wait."
factor One of the things that affects a result. "Price was the main factor when we chose a phone."
goal A target you set yourself and then try to hit. "His goal is to speak English at work."
opportunity A moment when something you want becomes possible. "The class trip is an opportunity to practice English."
option One of the things you are able to choose. "We have two options: walk or take the bus."
priority The task or aim that should be dealt with first. "Finishing school is her first priority."
reflect To consider a past event slowly and seriously. "After the test he reflected on how he had studied."
risk The possibility of loss or harm. "There is a risk of rain, so the picnic may move indoors."
weigh To judge each side of a question before choosing. "She weighed the higher pay against the longer drive."

Show all 36 words (24 more)

Verbs for choosing 12

back out To drop a promise or plan you had agreed to. "He agreed to sing and then backed out."
hesitate To wait a moment out of doubt before acting. "She hesitated before she signed her name."
narrow down To cut a long list to the few best ones. "They narrowed the list down to three names."
opt for To pick one thing instead of the others. "In the end he opted for the cheaper phone."
persuade To talk someone into doing or believing a thing. "He persuaded his sister to join the team."
postpone To move an event to a later day or time. "They postponed the picnic until Sunday."
predict To state what you expect the future to bring. "Nobody can predict who will win."
prefer To enjoy or want one more than the rest. "I prefer tea to coffee."
recommend To advise someone to pick a certain thing. "The teacher recommended the shorter book."
rule out To cross a choice off the list of possibilities. "We ruled out the red one because it cost too much."
stick with To keep going with a choice and not switch. "She stuck with her first answer."
think over To consider a plan with care before answering. "Let me think it over and tell you tomorrow."

Phrases about deciding 12

change your mind To drop your first decision and make a new one. "He ordered pizza, then changed his mind and had soup."
go ahead To start doing what you planned. "The plan is ready, so let's go ahead."
last resort The only choice left after the rest have failed. "As a last resort, we can ask the neighbors for help."
make up your mind To finally decide after being unsure. "I can't make up my mind between the two jobs."
no-brainer A decision so easy it needs almost no thought. "Free tickets? That is a no-brainer."
on the fence Not yet able to pick a side. "I'm still on the fence about which class to take."
play it safe To choose the careful way and avoid danger. "He played it safe and left an hour early."
pros and cons The reasons for and the reasons against a plan. "We wrote down the pros and cons of each plan."
second thoughts New doubts about a decision already made. "She is having second thoughts about the trip."
sleep on it To wait until the next day before deciding. "Don't answer tonight. Sleep on it."
take a chance To try something even though it may fail. "She took a chance and applied for the job."
up to you Yours to decide; nobody else will choose for you. "We can walk or drive. It's up to you."

How this list was compiled: Word list chosen for this site on 2026-10-11. Each meaning is written in our own words and was checked that day against the entry for the word or phrase in Wiktionary, the free dictionary (https://en.wiktionary.org/), whose text is under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike license, and a second time against the entry in the Cambridge Dictionary (https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/). Opt for was read in the first dictionary's entry opt, sleep on it in its entry sleep on, and up to you in both dictionaries' entry up to. The sentence after each meaning is our own example of the word in use. Licence: own work

How it works

This making decisions ESL vocabulary worksheet prints twelve words down the left and their plain-English meanings, mixed up, down the right. Two more sets hold verbs for choosing and everyday phrases such as sleep on it.

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Key words, then verbs

Set opens on Key words: option, consequence, weigh, goal, risk, reflect, decision, advantage, disadvantage, factor, opportunity and priority. Verbs for choosing prints prefer, predict, recommend, persuade, postpone and hesitate, then six phrasal verbs: rule out, narrow down, opt for, think over, back out and stick with.

Phrases a learner hears

Phrases about deciding has make up your mind, change your mind, second thoughts, pros and cons, sleep on it, on the fence, play it safe, take a chance, last resort, no-brainer, up to you and go ahead. Under the tool each one has a sentence, such as "We can walk or drive. It's up to you."

The phrases are printed the way people say them: make up your mind, not make up one's mind.

Questions and answers

What does pros and cons mean?

The reasons for something and the reasons against it. The phrase comes from two Latin words, pro, meaning for, and contra, meaning against. A pros and cons list has one column for each.

What does sleep on it mean?

To put off a decision until at least the next day, so that it is not made in a hurry. "Let me sleep on it" asks for that extra night.

What does on the fence mean?

Undecided. A person who is on the fence has not yet picked one side or the other. The longer form, to sit on the fence, means to put off choosing.

What is a no-brainer?

An informal word for a decision that is very easy or obvious, one that takes almost no thought. Taking the one empty seat on a full bus is a no-brainer.