Undecided and indecisive

Question

HiCould you please shed some light on these sentences?I am still undecided about this.I am still indecisive about this.Do they carry the same meaning?Thanks,Tom

Avangi · Accepted Answer

Undecided is usually a condition of a person.

Indecisive is usually a quality of a person or thing.

Mr. Tom · Answer

Thanks, Avangi,

So both sentences are grammatically correct and natural?

Tom

Avangi · Answer

Sorry, my first reply was incomplete. I'd say the second sentence is neither correct nor natural.

In my reading, "undecided" is a temporary condition. You may make up your mind.

"Indecisive" is probably not well-applied to "things." The results of the trial were inconclusive.

I read "indecisive" as a rather permanent quality of a person, although you may say that he acted indecisively in some particular situation - perhaps he was uncharacteristically indecisive.

You can be an indecisive person, and you can feel indecisive about this; but I'm not sure you can be indecisive about this.

Edit. Well, perhaps if you use "be" in the sense of "act," it would be okay.

I'm not sure. We should be talking about the adverb - act indecisively.

He is still being stubborn about this.
He is still being indecisive about this.

Need more opinions!

CalifJim · Answer

Mr. TomCould you please shed some light on these sentences?

I am still undecided about this.
I am still indecisive about this.

Speaking of yourself, you would say that you were undecided. You are still weighing the pros and cons of the situation.

I haven't made up my mind yet. = I haven't decided yet. = I'm still undecided.

You would not likely consider yourself indecisive except if you were making a self-perceptive admission to your psychiatrist.

You would save the label "indecisive" for other people who irritate you with their indecisiveness. (See below.)

_____
If, over a period of time, you show yourself to be such a disorganized or fretful person that you can never make up your mind, you will gain the negative reputation of being indecisive. Other people may then call you indecisive.

What bothers me most about Peter is that he is so indecisive. The group is waiting for him to decide so we can proceed with this project, and he is delaying progress for all of us by being so indecisive. It's very annoying.

Being indecisive is a character trait, like being intelligent. You aren't indecisive about something any more than you are intelligent about something. You're just indecisive or intelligent. Period.

CJ

Mr. Tom · Answer

I'm grateful, Avangi and CJ.

...but CJ's post prompted me to ask one more question (if I may).

I've been using intelligent this way; should I stop? I mean, is it wrong to use intelligent this way?

He was really intelligent about it.
(he may be stupid, but intelligent about a particular decision etc)

Please shed some light on this.

Tom

Mr. Tom · Answer

...and can I use decided as the opposite of undecided?

I am still not decided about it. (used as an adjective, not verb.)

Thanks,

Tom

Yankee · Answer

Mr. TomI've been using intelligent this way; should I stop? I mean, is it wrong to use intelligent this way?

He was really intelligent about it.

You might possibly use "intelligent" that way on occasion, but I wouldn't make a habit of using it that way on a regular basis. In addition, your sentence is too short and not specific enough to really judge whether or not you might be using "intelligent about" in a natural-sounding way.

Mr. Tom(he may be stupid, but intelligent about a particular decision etc)

I don't like that wording.

I'd say you may sometimes hear people say things such as this, for example:

- People have become more intelligent about the way they handle garbage and the benefits of recycling.
- Don't be stupid. Act intelligent about something for a change!

Have you checked the BNC or COCA for usage examples of "intelligent about"?

Yankee · Answer

Mr. Tom...and can I use decided as the opposite of undecided?

I am still not decided about it. (used as an adjective, not verb.)

You haven't actually written a sentence with an opposite meaning because you have negated the verb "be".
You could say it that way, but I'd say people would most commonly use either the adjective "undecided" (rather than "be" plus "not" plus the adjective "decided") OR they would simply use a negated form of the verb "decide": "I still haven't decided."

Undecided and indecisive

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