Meaning & use
non-discretionary
Last updated
Meanings
adjectivenot comparableformal
Not based on or left to someone's judgment; required by a rule, contract, or fixed system.
Grammar: Used before a noun (non-discretionary spending) or after a linking verb (the payment is non-discretionary). It has no comparative forms.
Patterns
- non-discretionary spending
- non-discretionary payment
- be non-discretionary
The fund has a non-discretionary mandate, so the manager must follow the index exactly.
In the budget, non-discretionary items like debt interest cannot be cut.
Their fees are non-discretionary and are set out in the contract.
adjectivenot comparablebusinessfinance
In finance, describing an account or order in which a broker acts only on the client's instructions.
Grammar: Common in business and finance; it contrasts with discretionary, where the broker may decide.
Patterns
- non-discretionary account
- non-discretionary order
- non-discretionary broker
She opened a non-discretionary account because she wanted to approve every trade.
A non-discretionary order gives the broker no freedom to choose investments.
The regulator treats non-discretionary services differently from advisory ones.
Common combinations
- non-discretionary spending
- Non-discretionary spending on health and pensions takes up most of the budget.
- non-discretionary account
- He prefers a non-discretionary account so that he keeps control.
- non-discretionary basis
- The trades are carried out on a non-discretionary basis.
- non-discretionary payment
- Rent is a non-discretionary payment that must be made each month.
Synonyms and how they differ
- mandatory
- Mandatory means it is required by law or rule; non-discretionary stresses that no personal choice is allowed, often in finance or budgets.
- obligatory
- Obligatory is close but more general and formal; non-discretionary is the usual term in financial and policy contexts.
Opposites
Word family
- discretion noun
- The freedom or authority to decide something yourself.
- discretionary adjective
- Allowed to be decided by personal judgment rather than fixed rules.
Commonly confused: non-discretionary or discretionary?
non-discretionary vs discretionary
Discretionary means a choice is allowed; non-discretionary means no choice is allowed. The prefix non- reverses the meaning.
Practice
In the budget, ______ spending such as interest on the national debt cannot be reduced without changing the law.
Choose one answer.
Non-discretionary fits because the spending is fixed by law and not a matter of choice. Discretionary would mean it can be adjusted by choice, and optional and voluntary both suggest it is not required.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “non-discretionary”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.