I saw this dictionary entry, and it says "discretion" could mean approximately either 1) the right to choose what to do or 2) the quality of being careful what you do.
The dictionary has these two example sentences illustrating those two senses:
- The coach used/exercised his own discretion to let the injured quarterback play. (for sense 1)
- He always uses care and discretion when dealing with others. (for sense 2)
Assuming "practice" (US verb) = "practise" (UK verb). If I write this:
He practices discretion when dealing with problems.
should "discretion" have the "right to choose" sense or the "being careful" sense? Or is it ambiguous?
Best Answer
They both carry the same basic sense of discernment or judgement which can be considered synonyms of the word.
Discretion derives from the Latin stem discrēt- meaning to separate or to divide - and therefore to discern (which is also derived from the common stem cernĕre (to separate)) - giving rise to two words in English which essentially mean the same (discreet and discrete). Thus, to be discrete means to separate or divide, which means to be discreet or to exercise discretion (discernment). The spelling discreet tends to be used more in a moral context with the second spelling discrete now more common in other contexts.