# real vs repay

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### real
*adjective · IPA /ɹiːl/ · frequency rank #229*
True, genuine, not merely nominal or apparent.

### repay
*verb · IPA /ɹiˈpeɪ/ · frequency rank #11,953*
Synonym of pay back in all senses.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-09-03.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/vs/real-vs-repay