select
se·lect / səˈlekt/ • v. [tr.] carefully choose as being the best or most suitable: students must select their own program | [tr.] he has been selected to take part | [intr.] you can select from a range of quality products. ∎ [intr.] (select for/against) Biol. (in terms of evolution) determine whether (a characteristic or organism) will survive: a phenotype can be selected against. ∎ use a mouse or keystrokes to mark (something) on a computer screen for a particular operation.• adj. (of a group of people or things) carefully chosen from a larger number as being the best or most valuable: he joined his select team of young Intelligence operatives. ∎ (of a place or group of people) only used by or consisting of a wealthy or sophisticated elite; exclusive: the opera was seen by a small and highly select audience.DERIVATIVES: se·lect·a·ble adj.se·lect·ness n.ORIGIN: mid 16th cent.: from Latin select- ‘chosen,’ from the verb seligere, from se- ‘apart’ + legere ‘choose.’
select
1. To initiate an action or enable a data path.
2. To choose one of several possible control paths at a particular point in a program. The selection operation is usually made by a case statement, though if there are only two alternatives an if then else statement can be used.
3. To mark out a section of a document before performing an operation on it, such as copy, move, or cut, or before changing its attributes, such as font, color, margins, or line spacing. The selection process can be done using the keyboard or by dragging the cursor with a pointing device such as a mouse. The marked text is known as the selection.
4. To indicate an item in a menu, menu bar, button bar, etc., with the selection cursor before initiating an action.
select
So vb. pick out. XVI. f. pp. stem of the L. vb. selection XVII. — L. Hence selective XVII.