Discrete

/dɪˈskɹiːt/ · adjective

Meaning

Separate; distinct; individual; non-continuous..

Definitions by Sense

1. Separate; distinct; individual; non-continuous.
2. That can be perceived individually, not as connected to, or part of, something else.
3. (mathematics) Consisting of or permitting only distinct values drawn from a finite, countable set.
4. (electrical engineering) Having separate electronic components, such as individual diodes, transistors and resistors, as opposed to integrated circuitry.
5. (audio engineering) Having separate and independent channels of audio, as opposed to multiplexed stereo or quadraphonic, or other multi-channel sound.
6. (topology) Having each singleton subset open: said of a topological space or a topology.
7. Disjunctive; containing a disjunctive or discretive clause.
8. Obsolete form of discreet.

Example Sentences

a government with three discrete divisions

There are two laws discrete, / Not reconciled,— / Law for man, and law for thing; / The last builds town and fleet, / But it runs wild, / And doth the man unking.

But analysis, penetrating beneath the fact of Sense in search of its ideal factors, declares that this mass of marble is something very different from what it appears : its seeming continuity is broken up into discrete molecules, separated from each other as the stars in the Milky Way are separated ; and its seeming homogeneity is resolved into heterogeneous substances, which are themselves in all probability composite.

It's not that there aren't measurable, quantifiable differences between all these categories we impose upon things, it's just that for the most part they fit not into discrete units, but into a continuum.

a discrete sum

"I resign my life, but not my honour" is a discrete proposition.

Synonyms for discrete

Antonyms for discrete

Related Words

Word Forms

• more discrete
• most discrete
• discreter
• discretest

Usage Notes

Choose a synonym only when it preserves the intended meaning, tone, and grammar of the full sentence.

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