Homophones with shared etymology are quite rare, though; so it's a reasonable mistake to make. "Discreetion", anyone? Besides, in every other Latin-deriving la

Homophones with shared etymology are quite rare, though; so it's a reasonable mistake to make. "Discreetion", anyone? Besides, in every other Latin-deriving language there is no such distinction. English is the exception, not the rule --and for rather obtuse reasons, at that [1]: Spellings discrete and nativized discreet co-existed until after c.1600, when discreet became the common word for "careful, prudent," and discrete was maintained in philosophy, medicine, music and other disciplines that remembered Latin and made effort to obey it. [1] http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=discreet http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=discreet