as in optional
subject to one's freedom of choice
discretionary spending on luxuries dropped dramatically last year
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Recent Examples of discretionary
Though the City Council acted to restore some funding toward wildfire-prevention brush management that Mayor Todd Gloria had tried to cut and restored discretionary funds that council members can distribute in their communities, the impact of those moves isn’t immediately clear.
—
Noah Lyons, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 July 2025
Domestic revenue saw weakness throughout the quarter due to lower discretionary spending.
—Ankita Dhawan, Forbes.com, 12 July 2025
While discretionary spending may decline in bear markets, health care demand remains resilient.
—Michael Khouw, CNBC, 10 July 2025
Historically, developments of the type on Rosecrans have been subject to discretionary review, meaning the public gets an opportunity to weigh in.
—Tyler Faurot, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for discretionary
Noah Lyons, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 July 2025
Domestic revenue saw weakness throughout the quarter due to lower discretionary spending.
—Ankita Dhawan, Forbes.com, 12 July 2025
While discretionary spending may decline in bear markets, health care demand remains resilient.
—Michael Khouw, CNBC, 10 July 2025
Historically, developments of the type on Rosecrans have been subject to discretionary review, meaning the public gets an opportunity to weigh in.
—Tyler Faurot, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for discretionary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for discretionary
Adjective
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Transfer the ice cream to an airtight container and freeze until ready to serve. Variations Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Add ½ cup regular or mini semisweet chocolate chips, 1 teaspoon peppermint extract and 2 to 3 drops of green food coloring (food coloring is optional).—
Robin Miller,
AZCentral.com,
29 July 2025
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Watching Dragon Ball in canon order is a little trickier since most of the movies are technically optional.—
Chris Snellgrove,
EW.com,
29 July 2025
Adjective
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Viewers and listeners of PBS and NPR are significantly more affluent than the average American, which gives them the means to support public broadcasting through voluntary contributions.—
The Editors,
National Review,
14 July 2025
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On June 9, Alma Pak International LLC announced a voluntary recall of 400 boxes of its organic blueberries due to the presence of Listeria monocytogenes.—
Raven Brunner,
People.com,
14 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Discretionary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/discretionary. Accessed 1 Aug. 2025.
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