smattering vs discernment

smattering and discernment both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
smattering	Yes	No	No	No
discernment	Yes	No	No	No

As nouns, discernment is a hypernym of smattering; that is, discernment is a word with a broader meaning than smattering:

Other hypernyms of smattering include apprehension, savvy, understanding.

smattering (noun)	discernment (noun)
a slight or superficial understanding of a subject	the trait of judging wisely and objectively
a small number or amount	the mental ability to understand and discriminate between relations
	the cognitive condition of someone who understands
	perception of that which is obscure
	delicate discrimination (especially of esthetic values)