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
Consumer discretionary stocks, down 2.7% across the board, were again the worst performers.
—
Lisa Kailai Han, CNBC, 23 Oct. 2024
People have less money to spend on discretionary items like art and need to concentrate on economic survival and the purchase of basic commodities and needs.
—Zain Jaffer, Rolling Stone, 21 Oct. 2024
But here’s some good news, at least from a retirement perspective: Generation X is spending less on discretionary purchases in 2024, Bank of America reports.
—Daniel De Visé, USA TODAY, 19 Oct. 2024
But for the wealthiest one-fifth, the share of their spending on discretionary purchases actually increased.
—Christopher Rugaber, Fortune, 18 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for discretionary 
Lisa Kailai Han, CNBC, 23 Oct. 2024
People have less money to spend on discretionary items like art and need to concentrate on economic survival and the purchase of basic commodities and needs.
—Zain Jaffer, Rolling Stone, 21 Oct. 2024
But here’s some good news, at least from a retirement perspective: Generation X is spending less on discretionary purchases in 2024, Bank of America reports.
—Daniel De Visé, USA TODAY, 19 Oct. 2024
But for the wealthiest one-fifth, the share of their spending on discretionary purchases actually increased.
—Christopher Rugaber, Fortune, 18 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for discretionary
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Cite this Entry
“Discretionary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/discretionary. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
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