In a careful, quiet, and subtle way that avoids drawing attention or revealing secrets.
From French 'discret', derived from Latin 'discretus' meaning 'separated' or 'distinct', the past participle of 'discernere' meaning 'to separate' or 'to distinguish'. The 'ly' suffix makes it an adverb. Over time, it evolved to mean doing things in a separate, unobtrusive way.
There's a tricky cousin word: 'discretion' (showing good judgment) vs 'discreet' (acting quietly). They're both from Latin 'discretus' but developed slightly different meanings—'discretion' became about judgment, while 'discreet' became about subtlety. Closely related words don't always match perfectly!
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