“Discreet” vs. “Discrete”: What’s the Difference?

A line illustration of two people with their mouth open, and a giant question mark between them.

The difference between “discreet” and “discrete”

  • Discreet involves being cautious, subtle, or tactful, while discrete involves being separate, distinct, or individual.
  • Discreet pertains to behavior, while discrete pertains to objects or entities.
Communicate naturally with Engram AI proofreader

What is the definition of “discreet” and “discrete”?

Discreet
  • Discreet refers to the act of being careful in what one says or does to avoid causing offense or revealing private information.
  • It can also mean being intentionally unobtrusive or inconspicuous in order not to draw attention to oneself or something else.
  • Examples of discretion include keeping someone's secrets, not discussing a sensitive topic in public, or behaving in a tactful manner.
Discrete
  • Discrete refers to something that is separate or distinct, not connected or continuous with something else.
  • It can also refer to something that is made up of distinct parts or elements that can be counted or measured.
  • Examples of discrete objects include individual numbers, separate words in a sentence, or separate components in a machine.

Which is the more popular variant on the Internet?

“Discrete” is the more popular variant on the web.
Discreet
61,700,000 results on the web
Examples
  1. She received a discreet text message from her friend during the meeting.
  2. The detective followed the suspect discreetly to avoid arousing suspicion.
  3. He was discreet with his personal life and never spoke about his relationships.
More popular
Discrete
409,000,000 results on the web
Examples
  1. The data was divided into discrete categories before analysis.
  2. The company's operations were managed by discrete teams to improve efficiency.
  3. The machine produced a discrete number of products each hour.
Want to express yourself confidently?
Engram AI proofreader helps you
communicate naturally
An illustration of a person writing freely on their laptop, using Engram.An illustration of a person writing freely on their laptop, using Engram.

Related articles