discretionary
adj.available to be used or decided by someone based on what they think is best, rather than being fixed by a rule.
adj.left to individual judgement or choice rather than being dictated by fixed rules or requirements.
“The manager has a discretionary fund for small office repairs.”
“After paying for rent and groceries, she had very little discretionary income left for hobbies or travel.”
“The judge exercised his discretionary powers to reduce the sentence, citing the defendant's lack of prior convictions and genuine remorse during the trial.”
Often used to modify nouns related to finance or authority, such as 'income', 'spending', or 'power'.
“India's per capita income crossed $2,000 in 2019, a threshold beyond which discretionary spending tends to grow exponentially, according to Redseer, a business consultancy.”
“Someone needs to have discretionary income of nearly £100,000 a year to actually save money after covering the £1,200 annual cost of GLP-1 medication, according to an analysis by the consultancy Baringa.”
From discretion + -ary (“pertaining to”). Compare French discrétionnaire.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.