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gut decision

[/ɡʌt dɪˈsɪʒən/]
nounpl: gut decisions
decisão por instinto
1. A decision made based on intuition, instinct, or feeling rather than on careful analysis or rational thinking
I had to make a gut decision about which job offer to accept without having time to think it through.
Tive que tomar uma decisão por instinto sobre qual oferta de emprego aceitar sem ter tempo para pensar bem.
2. A choice based on one's immediate emotional or visceral reaction to a situation
My gut decision told me not to trust him, and I was right.
Meu instinto me disse para não confiar nele, e eu estava certo.
NYC Slang
off the top of your head decision; seat-of-your-pants call
Synonyms
intuitive decisioninstinctive choicesnap decisionvisceral decisiongut feeling-based decision
Antonyms
rational decisioncalculated decisiondeliberate decisionanalytical decisioninformed decision

Regional Variations

General Brazilian
decisão por instinto
Most common usage; also 'decisão de barriga' or 'achismo'
Rio de Janeiro
decisão de gut
Anglicism often used in urban informal contexts
São Paulo
decisão intuitiva
More formal alternative; business contexts
Portugal
decisão por intuição
Preferred in formal contexts; 'decisão de barriga' also used colloquially

Related Idioms & Phrases

go with your gut
follow your instincts
trust your gut
gut feeling
play it by ear
fly by the seat of your pants
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