Are Your “Discreet” or “Discrete”?

You can be both, but most of the time people want to use the word that means “judicious in one’s conduct or speech, especially with regard to respecting privacy or maintaining silence about something of a delicate nature.”

They want discreet.

Sometimes, however, people use the homonym discrete. This has nothing to do with proper conduct but has everything to do with “distinct or unconnected elements.”

A synonym of discreet is “cautious and sensible.”

A synonym of discrete is “distinct.”

Therefore, if you want to discretely tell someone something, it will be a bit tougher to do it privately — unless you want to be discreet about it.

Until next time! Use the right words!

leebarnathan.com