Which to use
“read” and “repaid” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #266
- “read” frequency rank
- #19,960
- “repaid” frequency rank
- 20226
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | read | repaid |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To look at and interpret letters or other information that is written. | simple past and past participle of repay |
Where the eye mixes read and repaid
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: read vs repaid
A purely visual mix-up. read (/ɹiːd/) and repaid (/ɹɪˈpeɪd/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 20226, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
read is recorded at frequency rank #266, classified as averb, pronounced /ɹiːd/. repaid is at rank #19,960, tagged as averb, pronounced /ɹɪˈpeɪd/.
Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.
With a confusion score of 20226, this pair ranks #432,602 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of read vs repaid
Shared letters: ader. Private to "read": -. Private to "repaid": ip.
"read" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "repaid" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "read" and "repaid" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "read" or "repaid"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "read" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "repaid" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #432,602 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "read" and "repaid" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "repaid vs repaint". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #432,602 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.