decide upon
phrasal verb.phrasal verb. to choose something after thinking about it carefully for a while.
phrasal verb. to select or settle on a particular option from a range of possibilities; often implies a period of deliberation or a formal conclusion.
We finally decided upon a date for the wedding.
After reviewing all the applications, the committee decided upon the most experienced candidate for the role.
The council has yet to decide upon a strategy that balances economic growth with environmental preservation.
more formal than 'decide on' and much more formal than just 'choose'.
point out that 'upon' is a formal variant of 'on'; in most spoken contexts, students should use 'decide on' to avoid sounding overly stiff.
They decided upon to go to Italy.They decided to go to Italy.do not use 'upon' before an infinitive verb; it must be followed by a noun or a gerund.
Last updated April 24, 2026