Which to use
“rebut” and “remit” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #47,289
- “rebut” frequency rank
- #25,901
- “remit” frequency rank
- 73190
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | rebut | remit |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To drive back or beat back; to repulse. | To transmit or send (e.g. money in payment); to supply. |
Where the eye mixes rebut and remit
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. rebut and remit follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses rebut with remit
A purely visual mix-up. rebut (/ɹɪˈbʌt/) and remit (/ɹɪˈmɪt/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 73190, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
rebut is recorded at frequency rank #47,289, classified as averb, pronounced /ɹɪˈbʌt/. remit is at rank #25,901, tagged as averb, pronounced /ɹɪˈmɪt/.
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 73190, this pair ranks #40,458 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of rebut vs remit
Shared letters: ert. Private to "rebut": bu. Private to "remit": im.
"rebut" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "remit" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "rebut" for "remit" ever safe?
Which is more common, "rebut" or "remit"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "rebut" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "remit" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #40,458 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "rebut" and "remit" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "rebar vs rebut". 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 #40,458 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.