待人的分寸
線畫在「說到哪裡為止」——判斷力用在人際上。
tact · noun · C2
The ability to deal with situations without upsetting people or telling any of their secrets.
謹慎
核心畫面
A useful picture: the power to draw the line yourself. You are standing at a moment where nobody has written down the answer — how much to say, whether to bend the rule — and it is left to your own judgment. Sometimes that judgment shows as ; sometimes it shows as authority.
一條線由你自己來畫。眼前的情況沒有白紙黑字的答案——這句話該不該說、這個例外該不該放行——上頭沒有規定，就交給你自己…更多收起
一條線由你自己來畫。眼前的情況沒有白紙黑字的答案——這句話該不該說、這個例外該不該放行——上頭沒有規定，就交給你自己判斷。這個「自己判斷」是整個字的中心：它有時候顯現成待人的分寸感（知道什麼該收著），有時候顯現成手上的權力（規則到這裡停下，剩下由你決定）。英文說 at your discretion，講的正是那條線落在誰手上。From the word’s history
Same Latin root as discreet: discernere, 'to separate, tell apart'. Late Latin discrētiō named the act of telling things apart, and that separating power is exactly what the modern noun keeps — the mind sorting this from that, when no rule does the sorting for you.
跟 discreet 同一個字根：拉丁文 discernere「分開、辨別」，晚期拉丁文 discrētiō 指的就是「分辨這件事本身」。現代這個名詞保留的正是那股分辨的力量——當沒有規則替你分類，你心裡那把尺就得自己下判斷。所以無論是「話該不該說」還是「這個案子准不准」，底下都是同一個動作：把界線分出來。
Wiktionary 'discretion' etymology (Middle English discrecioun < Old French discretion < Late Latin discrētiō < Latin discerno); equivalent to discreet + -ion.
Three branches
決定權
同一份判斷力被制度承認之後，就變成一個人手上正式的權力。
power to decide · noun · C2
The ability and right to decide exactly what should be done in a particular situation.
裁量權
固定說法
這一支不是新的意思，而是核心判斷力被壓進一句成語裡的用法。
discretion is the better part of valour · noun · C2
Used to say that it is better to be careful than to take a risk you do not need to take.
謹慎為上
原始詞典資料4 筆記錄
以下是外部詞典記錄的用法，原文照列，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。
discretionnoun/dɪˈskɹɛʃən/
- 1
The quality of being discreet.
- Bob showed great discretion despite his knowledge of the affair.
- 2
The ability to make wise choices or decisions.
- With regard to a woman, at nine years of age, she was, if married, considered entitled to her dower; at twelve, she may consent to marriage; at fourteen, she is at years of discretion, and may choose a guardian; […]
- 3
The freedom to make one's own judgements.
- I leave that to your discretion.
- 4
The freedom to make one's own judgements.
- The police came and searched us at their discretion because we were shouting at each other's faces.
資料來源：英文維基詞典 English Wiktionary（CC BY-SA 4.0）。 原文照列，未經改寫。