# selection

/səˈɫɛkʃən/ (US) · /sɪlˈɛkʃən/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/selection
Updated: 2026-06-19

## Senses

### 1. the act of choosing

noun · CEFR B1

the act or process of picking someone or something from a group.

For teachers: the process or act of choosing from a range of possibilities. Often used uncountably to describe the procedure itself.

- The selection of the final team took the coach several hours.
- The selection of a new CEO is a rigorous process that involves multiple rounds of interviews and psychological assessments.

### 2. a range of options

noun · CEFR B1

a variety of different things that you can choose from.

For teachers: a collection or variety of items from which a choice may be made.

- The shop has a wide selection of fresh bread and cakes.
- The boutique offers a curated selection of vintage clothing, catering to a niche market of fashion historians and collectors.

### 3. the chosen items

noun · CEFR B2

the specific person or thing that has been picked.

For teachers: the specific individual or group of individuals that has been selected from a larger population.

- Her selection for the national choir was a dream come true.
- The committee's final selection surprised many, as they opted for a relatively unknown candidate over the industry veteran.

### 4. natural selection

noun · CEFR B2 · Academic

the process where living things that are better suited to their environment survive and have babies.

For teachers: the process whereby organisms better adapted to their environment tend to survive and produce more offspring. Often used as a shorthand for 'natural selection'.

- In biology class, we learned how selection helps animals change over time.
- Darwinian selection remains the cornerstone of modern evolutionary biology, explaining the gradual diversification of species through environmental pressures.

### 5. computing/data

noun · CEFR B2 · Technical

a part of a document or a list of data that you have highlighted to work on.

For teachers: a highlighted or specified set of data or text upon which a user operation is performed.

- You can copy your selection by pressing the right mouse button.
- The software allows for the precise selection of pixels based on colour frequency, facilitating complex image manipulation.

## Examples

- The shop offers a wide selection of fresh bread.
- The committee will announce their final selection for the scholarship after the interviews are finished.
- Natural selection drives evolutionary change by ensuring that individuals with advantageous traits are more likely to survive and pass those characteristics to the next generation.

---

From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.