Choose , pick and select mean to take one or more from a number of things available ?usually a matter of preference. They may be used as exact synonyms: a man buying a lawn mower chooses (or picks or selects ) the one best suited to his needs. However, these words have separate shades of meaning that may make one or another of them more appropriate in a particular context. In the word choose , for example, the emphasis is on the act of will exercised in making the decision and, sometimes, on the finality of the decision. When we say that a young man chooses a career, we imply that he is making a voluntary decision and that he will probably pursue that career for the best of his working life. To select is to choose from several things (we choose , rather than select , one of two alternatives), and it suggests discrimination and a careful weighing of the reasons for the choice: At the beginning of the trial, a great deal of time was spent selecting the jurors. Pick is less precise in meaning than the other two words and can be used to cover situations in which neither decision-making nor discrimination is required: A housewife in a supermarket, confronted by several tins of tomatoes of identical size and quality, will often pick the one nearest to her.

Elect usually connotes choosing from a limited number of alternatives. In its usual sense, it means to choose a person for office by a majority or plurality of votes.

• The high-school class elected him captain; The American people elect a president every four years.

Cull means to pick the good from the bad or, more precisely, the bad from the good: A sheep breeder culls the weak animals from his flock.