discreet

Where does the word "discreet" come from? It comes from Latin cernere, passing through Latin and Old French before entering English (1300s).

Discreet’s story begins in Latin: cernere meant “to sift, to distinguish.” To sift, to distinguish, combined with dis- (apart). Within Latin, it grew into discernere by ancient. To sift apart, to discern, from dis- and cernere, with irregular past participle discretus. From there it passed into Old French as discret by medieval. Carried into French for someone careful and wise in speech. It reached English by 1300s as discreet. Settled as the English word for being careful to avoid embarrassment or attention. Today, discreet means careful and judicious in speech or behavior, avoiding unwanted attention.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient cernere "to sift, to distinguish", to sift, to distinguish, combined with dis- (apart).
2. Stage 2 · Latin · ancient discernere "to sift apart, to discern", to sift apart, to discern, from dis- and cernere, with irregular past participle discretus.
3. Stage 3 · Old French · medieval discret "careful and wise in speech", carried into French for someone careful and wise in speech.
4. Stage 4 · English · 1300s discreet "careful to avoid embarrassment or unwanted attention", settled as the English word for being careful to avoid embarrassment or attention.