discrete
/dɪˈskɹit/adjective
discrete is spelled D-I-S-C-R-E-T-E: 8 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 3.6 times per million words in written English, the 13,695th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). People search “discreet vs discrete” about 960 times a month (Bing, United States). As an adjective, discrete means “Separate; distinct; individual; non-continuous” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in discrete?
| Letters | 8: D-I-S-C-R-E-T-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 3.6 times per million words; the 13,695th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Pairs people search | |
| Sounds like | |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is discrete?
Discrete appears 3.6 times per million words in written English, the 13,695th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce discrete?
- UK /dɪˈskɹiːt/
- US /dɪˈskɹit/
- Australia /dɪˈskɹiːt/
Discrete has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-discrete.ogg, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Simplificationalizer-discrete.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with discrete
Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).
Sounds like: discreet (Wiktionary's homophone list; some hold only in some accents).
Also written: discreet.
Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
What rhymes with discrete?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as discrete from its last stressed vowel (/it/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: discreet.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of discrete
- more discrete comparative
- most discrete superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does discrete mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Separate; distinct; individual; non-continuous.
a government with three discrete divisions
- 2
That can be perceived individually, not as connected to, or part of, something else.
- 3
Consisting of or permitting only distinct values drawn from a finite, countable set.
a discrete sum
- 4
Having separate electronic components, such as individual diodes, transistors and resistors, as opposed to integrated circuitry.
- 5
Having separate and independent channels of audio, as opposed to multiplexed stereo or quadraphonic, or other multi-channel sound.
- 6
Having each singleton subset open: said of a topological space or a topology.
- 7
Disjunctive; containing a disjunctive or discretive clause.
"I resign my life, but not my honour" is a discrete proposition.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Discrete in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | distinct , discret |
| German | diskret |
| Portuguese | distinguido, distinto, discreto |
| Spanish | discreto |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does discrete come from?
From Old French discret, from Latin discrētus, past participle of discernō (“divide”), from dis- + cernō (“sift”). Doublet of discreet.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).