Lewis & Short

dis-cerno, crēvi, crētum, 3, v. a., to separate, set apart.

  1. I. Lit., to separate, part, divide (freq. since the Aug. per.): equas, ne inter se pugnare possint, Varr. R. R. 2, 7, 10: ordines (preceded by senatus a populo secretus), Liv. 34, 54: lignum a carnibus, Plin. 13, 4, 7, § 33: Lusitaniam a Baetica, id. 4, 21, 35, § 116: neque mons erat, qui fines eorum discerneret, i. e. to mark out, determine, Sall. J. 79, 3; cf. poet.: (saxum) telas auro, to interweave with gold, Verg. A. 4, 264; 11, 75: haec ipsa fortuna huc illucve discernit, divides, distributes, Cels. 7, 3.
    In the part. perf., divided, separated: duae urbes, magno inter se spatio discretae, Liv. 27, 39 fin.; cf.: Peraea a ceteris Judaeis Jordane amne, Plin. 5, 14, 15, § 70: Philippus mari tantum Ionio discretus, Liv. 23, 33; so, sol tanto intervallo, Plin. 2, 11, 8, § 50: uxor velo, id. Ep. 4, 19, 3: ager saxo, Stat. Th. 5, 559: decurias pluribus nominibus, Plin. 33, 2, 7, § 31 et saep.
    Of the hair, parted: discretaque collo Caesaries, Grat. Cyn. 272: divisa discretaque tellus, divided and separated, Lucr. 5, 1441: tellus (opp. permixta), id. 691: ubi discretas insula rumpit aquas, Ov. F. 2, 194: sedes piorum, set apart, retired, Hor. C. 2, 13, 23: quae cum sint turpissima discreta ac separata, turpius junguntur, Plin. Ep. 2, 6 fin.: septem discretus in ostia Nilus, Ov. M. 5, 324 (for which: septem digestum in cornua Nilum, id. ib. 9, 774); cf. Quint. 7, 1, 1.
  2. II. Trop.
    1. A. To separate things according to their different qualities, to distinguish between, discern (freq. and class.): alba et atra, Cic. Tusc. 5, 39, 114: discernere et dispicere insidiatorem et petitum insidiis, Liv. 40, 10: jus et injuriam, Tac. A. 2, 66: probanda atque improbanda, Quint. 2, 2, 11: fas atque nefas, Hor. C. 1, 18, 11 et saep.: id quod visum erit a falso, Cic. Ac. 2, 8, 25: pantheras a pardis solo candore, Plin. 8, 17, 23, § 63 et saep.: verba discerni articulatim, Lucr. 4, 555: suos, * Caes. B. G. 7, 75: piceam visu, Plin. 16, 10, 18, § 40: temperantiam duobus modis, Cic. Part. Or. 22, 77 et saep.: animus discernit, quid sit ejusdem generis, quid alterius, id. Univ. 8: pecuniae an famae minus parceret haud facile dis cerneres, Sall. C. 25, 3; so with an, Tac. A. 5, 6; id. H. 3, 28; Suet. Calig. 25; cf.: nec discernatur, jussu injussu imperatoris pugnent, Liv. 8, 34 fin.
    2. B. To determine, settle: limes agro positus litem ut discerneret arvis, Verg. A. 12, 898: discerne causam meam, Vulg. Psa. 42, 1.
    3. C. To except, omit, Amm. 14, 8, 7.
      Hence,
      1. * 1. discernen-ter, adv., with a distinction, Cael. Aur. Tard. 1, 4, no. 81.
      2. 2. discrētim, adv., separately, distinctly, App. M. 6, p. 173: singillatim ac discretim, id. Flor. 9, p. 347: adoriri, Amm. 29, 6: tradi, id. 28, 1; Hilar. in Psa. 138, 23.