discretionary

Etymology

It is formed from English discretion + -ary.^[2][3][4] Discretion, recorded from about 1300, is from Old French discrecion and directly from Late Latin discrētiō (“discernment”),^[5][3] which in classical Latin meant separation or distinction, from discernō (“to separate, distinguish”).^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Left to or exercised at one's own discretion; optional: 1643, in Patrick Darcy's Argument on the Commons of Ireland.^[2][6] Etymonline finds it implied in discretionarily in the 1680s,^[3] and Dictionary.com dates it to 1690–1700.^[4]

Semantic evolution

Johnson (1755) defined it as "left at large; unlimited; unrestrained", quoting Ayliffe's Parergon on a bishop's freedom to admit a deacon to orders when he thinks fit.^[7] From 1712 to the mid-18th century it could also mean discreet or prudent in behaviour, as in Steele's Spectator,^[2][6] and it was used briefly as an adverb, at one's discretion.^[2] In finance, a discretionary account or portfolio, from 1885, is one that a broker manages with full freedom on a client's behalf,^[2] and in later use the word was applied to resources that are available to spend as one chooses, as in discretionary income.^[2][6]

Timeline

• 1643 – left to or exercised at one's discretion.^[2][6]
• 1712 – discreet, prudent (obsolete after 1753).^[2]
• 1885 – in finance, of an account managed at a broker's discretion.^[2]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Left to the judgment of the person concerned; used or exercised as one sees fit: The judge has discretionary authority over the sentence.^[6][8][2]
2. Available to be used or spent as one chooses: After paying the rent, they had little discretionary income.^[6][2]
3. (finance) Of an account or portfolio, managed by a broker with full freedom on a client's behalf.^[2]
4. (archaic) Discreet; showing discretion.^[6][2]

Word family

• discretionarily
• nondiscretionary
• discretionary account
• discretionary income

Related words

• discretion
• discreet
• discern
• discrete

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
5. ^ a b Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
6. ^ a b c d e f g Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
7. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
8. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins