One way to picture it: someone who knows how to hold something back. They can see what is happening, they know the secret, they notice the awkward thing in the room — and they choose to keep quiet, or to say it so gently that nobody is hurt. Nothing about them draws attention: not their words, not their manner.
From the word’s history
Latin discernere means 'to separate, to tell apart' — the same root behind discern and discrete. What was separated out, the discrētus part, became in French discret the sense of a person with judgment: someone who can tell apart what may be said from what may not. English kept both branches — discrete (separate) and discreet (knowing what to keep separate from public view).
字根來自拉丁文 discernere「分開、辨別」，跟 discern（辨別）、discrete（各自分開的）同源。有趣的是分開這個動作後來走進了「人」身上：古法文 discret 指的是一個有判斷力的人——他能把「可以說的」和「不可以說的」分開來。所以現代的 discreet 底下其實還有一把無形的刀：他心裡分得很清楚，哪些留在檯面上，哪些留在自己這裡。英文最後把這條路分成兩個拼法，discrete 保留了「分開」的字面義，discreet 保留了「知道該把什麼分開藏好」。
Wiktionary 'discreet' etymology (Middle English discrete < Old French discret < Latin discrētus, past participle of discernere); doublet of discrete.
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原始詞典資料2 筆記錄
以下是外部詞典記錄的用法，摘錄並精簡格式，我們還沒有寫成教學內容。上面的說明才是我們自己寫的；有些用法可能上面已經講過了。
discreetadj/dɪˈskɹiːt/
- 1
Respectful of privacy or secrecy; exercising caution in order to avoid causing embarrassment; quiet; diplomatic.
- With a discreet gesture, she reminded him to mind his manners.
- John just doesn't understand that laughing at Mary all day is not very discreet.
- 2
Not drawing attention, anger or challenge; inconspicuous.
摘錄自 英文維基詞典 English Wiktionary，已精簡格式；依 CC BY-SA 4.0 授權使用，改動後的內容同樣以此授權提供。