[字辨] Make a decision? Take a decision?
This is not a "make or break" question. It's a "make or take" question, rather literally.
( ↑ 我竟然用英文講了個超冷的笑話 ）
總之，翻譯法律文件時，看到 take a decision一詞，
被訓練成對這類細節必須「龜毛」的我，
當下感到不妙：take a decision的意思，跟make a decision是不是不一樣呢？
（我的想法是，既然一樣，幹嘛不用make就好了，非要用個少見的take？）
查啊查的，發現連英美語系的人自己都搞不清楚。
以下列出參考內容，但先說結論：
make a decision 為美式
take a decision 為英式
在用法、語意上：
1. 兩者可以相等，亦即 make a decision = take a decision = DECIDE (沒錯，用一個字不就好了？）
2. make a decision 就是一般的做決定都可以用；take a decision則是"important, official, after careful considering" (深思熟慮後做出的重要決定，通常是正式的或政府、機構、董事會等所做的決定)
我自己的整理如下：
I'm new here but hope I can add to this old thread - perhaps other new comers may benefit too.
Aside from Longman dictionary (take a decision =make an important decision, especially after considering carefully), other authoritative dictionaries may also help shed light on this "take or make" question:
"take a decision" is British English usage, equivalent to "decide" (so it seems here that "take a decision" = "make a decision")
I also referred to the English usage books at hand:
From the discussions under this thread and my own search, I got the idea that "make a decision" is mainly AE, while "take" is BE.
However, it seems to me that even British references begin to slight (or forget) the use of "take a decision."
Another guess is that the phrases of "decision-making" and "decision-maker" have become business buzzwords, hence the winning popularity of "make" a decision over "take."
I personally would say "make a decision" in most cases, but I'll consider using "take a decision" in accordance with M-W dictionary explanations.
另亦可參考此處的回答：
http://blog.cybertranslator.idv.tw/archives/2948
( ↑ 我竟然用英文講了個超冷的笑話 ）
總之，翻譯法律文件時，看到 take a decision一詞，
被訓練成對這類細節必須「龜毛」的我，
當下感到不妙：take a decision的意思，跟make a decision是不是不一樣呢？
（我的想法是，既然一樣，幹嘛不用make就好了，非要用個少見的take？）
查啊查的，發現連英美語系的人自己都搞不清楚。
以下列出參考內容，但先說結論：
make a decision 為美式
take a decision 為英式
在用法、語意上：
1. 兩者可以相等，亦即 make a decision = take a decision = DECIDE (沒錯，用一個字不就好了？）
2. make a decision 就是一般的做決定都可以用；take a decision則是"important, official, after careful considering" (深思熟慮後做出的重要決定，通常是正式的或政府、機構、董事會等所做的決定)
我自己的整理如下：
I'm new here but hope I can add to this old thread - perhaps other new comers may benefit too.
Aside from Longman dictionary (take a decision =make an important decision, especially after considering carefully), other authoritative dictionaries may also help shed light on this "take or make" question:
"take a decision" is British English usage, equivalent to "decide" (so it seems here that "take a decision" = "make a decision")
- Merriam-Webster Learner's dictionary gives a similar explanation to that of Longman's:
- Interestingly, Cambridge online dictionary, among others, doesn't even include "take" in its examples of "decision."
I also referred to the English usage books at hand:
- Merriam-Webster's doesn't have an entry for "decision."
- Garner's Modern American Usage says "take a decision" is an example of British English invading American English in the late 20th century.
From the discussions under this thread and my own search, I got the idea that "make a decision" is mainly AE, while "take" is BE.
However, it seems to me that even British references begin to slight (or forget) the use of "take a decision."
Another guess is that the phrases of "decision-making" and "decision-maker" have become business buzzwords, hence the winning popularity of "make" a decision over "take."
I personally would say "make a decision" in most cases, but I'll consider using "take a decision" in accordance with M-W dictionary explanations.
另亦可參考此處的回答：
http://blog.cybertranslator.idv.tw/archives/2948
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