Vocabulary     

What does discretion mean?

Definitions for discretion
dɪˈskrɛʃ əndis·cre·tion

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word discretion.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. discretionnoun

    freedom to act or judge on one's own

  2. discretion, discreetness, circumspection, prudencenoun

    knowing how to avoid embarrassment or distress

    "the servants showed great tact and discretion"

  3. delicacy, discretionnoun

    refined taste; tact

  4. free will, discretionnoun

    the power of making free choices unconstrained by external agencies

  5. discretion, discernmentnoun

    the trait of judging wisely and objectively

    "a man of discernment"

Wiktionary

  1. discretionnoun

    The quality of being discreet or circumspect

    Bob showed great discretion despite his knowledge of the affair.

  2. discretionnoun

    The ability to make wise choices or decisions

  3. discretionnoun

    The freedom to make one's own judgements

    I leave that to your discretion.

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. Discretionnoun

    Etymology: from discretio, Latin.

    Nothing then was further thought upon for the manner of governing; but all permitted unto their wisdom and discretion which were to rule. Richard Hooker, b. i. s. 10.

    A knife may be taken away from a child, without depriving them of the benefits thereof, which have years and discretion to use it. Richard Hooker, b. iv. s. 12.

    It is not good that children should know any wickedness: old folks, you know, have discretion, as they say, and know the world. William Shakespeare, Merry Wives of Windsor.

    All this was order’d by the good discretion
    Of the right reverend cardinal of York. William Shakespeare, Hen. VIII.

    The pleasure of commanding our passions is to be preferred before any sensual pleasure; because it is the pleasure of wisdom and discretion. John Tillotson.

    But care in poetry must still be had,
    It asks discretion, ev’n in running mad. Alexander Pope, Ess. on Crit.

    There is no talent so useful towards rising in the world, or which puts men more out of the reach of fortune than discretion, a species of lower prudence. Jonathan Swift.

Wikipedia

  1. Discretion

    Discretion has the meaning of acting on one's own authority and judgment. In law, discretion as to legal rulings, such as whether evidence is excluded at a trial, may be exercised by a judge. Some view discretion negatively, while some view it positively. Discretion exists at all levels of law enforcement and in many types of front-line bureaucrats. Discretion has been called "the Art of suiting the action to particular circumstances" (Lord Scarman). Those in a position of power are most often able to exercise discretion as to how they will apply or exercise that power. The ability to make decisions which represent a responsible choice and for which an understanding of what is lawful, right or wise may be presupposed.

ChatGPT

  1. discretion

    Discretion is the ability to make sound judgments or decisions based on careful consideration of various factors, while keeping certain information, actions, or opinions confidential or private as deemed appropriate. It involves exercising caution and prudence to take appropriate actions or refrain from revealing certain things in order to respect privacy, maintain confidentiality, avoid causing harm, or maintain professional integrity.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Discretionnoun

    disjunction; separation

  2. Discretionnoun

    the quality of being discreet; wise conduct and management; cautious discernment, especially as to matters of propriety and self-control; prudence; circumspection; wariness

  3. Discretionnoun

    discrimination

  4. Discretionnoun

    freedom to act according to one's own judgment; unrestrained exercise of choice or will

  5. Etymology: [F. discrtion, L. discretio separation, difference, discernment, fr. discernere, discretum. See Discreet, Discern.]

Wikidata

  1. Discretion

    Discretion is a noun in the English language with several meanings revolving around the judgment of the person exercising the characteristic.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Discretion

    dis-kresh′un, n. quality of being discreet: prudence: liberty to act at pleasure.—adjs. Discre′tional, Discre′tionary, left to discretion: unrestricted,—advs. Discre′tionally, Discre′tionarily.—Age, Years, of discretion, mature years; At discretion, according to one's own judgment; Be at one's discretion, to be completely under another person's power or control; Surrender at discretion, to surrender unconditionally, that is, to another's discretion. [Through Fr. from L. discretion-em, discernĕre, -crētum.]

The Foolish Dictionary, by Gideon Wurdz

  1. DISCRETION

    An instinctive perception that enables us to say, "Oh, shut up!" to the small, weak man, and "I beg your pardon, but I do not entirely agree with your views," to the large, strong one.

Dictionary of Nautical Terms

  1. discretion

    To surrender at discretion, implies an unconditional yielding to the mercy of the conquerors.

Military Dictionary and Gazetteer

  1. discretion

    Se rendre à discrétion, surrendering unconditionally to a victorious enemy.

Editors Contribution

  1. discretionverb

    Instructing to contain order with expressing inversions to the creditor in a conditioned response ahead of time with ionic matter. 1.) the quality of behaving or speaking in such a way as to avoid causing offense or revealing private information. 2.) the freedom to decide what should be done in a particular situation.

    The Most High showed discretion to his people by giving them the words of Jesus Christ.

    Etymology: Forgiveness


    Submitted by Tehorah_Elyon on April 5, 2024  

Matched Categories

British National Corpus

  1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'discretion' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #4648

  2. Nouns Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'discretion' in Nouns Frequency: #1912

Usage in printed sourcesFrom: 

Anagrams for discretion »

  1. directions

  2. soricident

How to pronounce discretion?

How to say discretion in sign language?

Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of discretion in Chaldean Numerology is: 8

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of discretion in Pythagorean Numerology is: 8

Examples of discretion in a Sentence

  1. Eric Nelson:

    The Court's failure to do so was a prejudicial abuse of discretion that violated Mr. Chauvin's constitutional due rights, and a new trial must be granted.

  2. Alan Dershowitz:

    And its the Democrats who want to know why there wasnt charges. They want to know what the split was between those who wanted to charge and not charge an obstruction of justice. The law does not authorize that to be released. Dershowitz said Barr can use his discretion when it comes to the release of the Mueller report, but no court should order him to release the entire thing. He also warned that innocent people can fall for perjury traps. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP If an innocent person testifies truthfully and somebody else testifies the other way and if prosecutors choose to believe the other person, youve fallen into a perjury trap.

  3. Gregory Daco:

    With labor market conditions poised to cool further amid tighter financial conditions and growing financial market uncertainty likely to dampen households’ willingness to spend, we foresee soft consumer spending growth in coming quarters, recent data on household spending and credit growth indicate that we will likely see a K-shaped consumer spending pattern in 2023, with low- and median-income families exercising more spending restraint, and families at the higher of the income spectrum still spending, albeit with more discretion.

  4. Carrie Severino:

    This President has been brazen about his willingness to take action that is normally reserved to Congress, the fact that the Court added the constitutional question means that some justices recognized that this is not a run of the mill act of prosecutorial discretion, but a novel and controversial power grab.

  5. RAS CARDO REGGAE:

    witnessing the horrific deaths of black folks in america, including the genocidal deaths of those of us from covid, my soul grieves, as I must resolve-if sufferings and deaths must be things which defines us as black people, then let it be at our own choosing. let it not be at the sole discretion of our enemies. how long must we suffer for being brought to a strange land? a passion for my people never leaves me.

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Popularity rank by frequency of use

discretion#1#6747#10000

References

Translations for discretion

From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary

  • حرية التصرفArabic
  • преценка, благоразумие, усмотрение, дискретностBulgarian
  • možnost uvážení, soudnost, ohleduplnost, diskrétnost, uvážlivost, možnost se rozhodnoutCzech
  • pwyllWelsh
  • DiskretionGerman
  • اختیارPersian
  • hienotunteisuus, tahdikkuus, harkintakyky, hienovaraisuus, tilannetaju, oma harkintaFinnish
  • discrétionFrench
  • विवेकHindi
  • riservatezza, discrezione, discernimentoItalian
  • 신중Korean
  • discretieDutch
  • diskresjonNorwegian
  • dyskrecjaPolish
  • discriçãoPortuguese
  • maturitate, libertate de decizie, rezervă, discrețieRomanian
  • [[свобода]] [[действие, прозорливость, усмотрение, осмотрительностьRussian
  • omdöme, diskretionSwedish
  • சுயேச்சையானTamil
  • విచక్షణతోTelugu
  • صوابدیدUrdu
  • sự cẩn trọngVietnamese
  • 慎重Chinese

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"discretion." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2025. Web. 20 Jan. 2025. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/discretion>.

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    not established or confirmed
    A ravening
    B occlusive
    C unsealed
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