Word(s) of the Day: Discreet v. Discrete

Discreet /dəˈskrēt/, adjective: 1. careful and circumspect in one’s speech or actions; tactful, trustworthy “Be discreet in all things, and so render it unnecessary to be mysterious.”Arthur Wellesley, 1769 – 1852 “Oh, if I could put some of my reckless spirit into these discreet cautious lazy men!” Mary Boykin Chesnut, 1823 – 1886 2. intentionally unobtrusive “Satire’s my weapon, but I’m too discreet To run amuck, and tilt at all I meet.” Alexander Pope, 1688 – 1744 Discrete /dəˈskrēt/, adjective: 1. individually separate and distinct; discontinuous “At the head of these new discoveries and insights comes the establishment of the facts that electricity is composed of discrete particles of equal size, or quanta, and that light is an electromagnetic wave motion.” Johannes Stark, 1874 – 1957 “Above all, the translation of books into digital formats means the destruction of boundaries. Bound, printed texts are discrete objects: immutable, individual, lendable, cut off from the world.” Tom Chatfield, 1980 –