Which to use
“recite” is a verb and “rewrite” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #20,200
- “recite” frequency rank
- #15,695
- “rewrite” frequency rank
- 35895
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | recite | rewrite |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To repeat aloud (some passage, poem or other text previously memorized, or in front of one's eyes), often before an audience. | The act of writing again or anew. |
Where the eye mixes recite and rewrite
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: recite vs rewrite
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: recite is /ɹɪˈsaɪt/ while rewrite is /ˈɹiː.ɹaɪt/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 35895, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
recite is recorded at frequency rank #20,200, classified as averb, pronounced /ɹɪˈsaɪt/. rewrite is at rank #15,695, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈɹiː.ɹaɪt/.
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 35895, this pair ranks #307,988 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of recite vs rewrite
Shared letters: eirt. Private to "recite": c. Private to "rewrite": w.
"recite" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV · "rewrite" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "recite" for "rewrite" ever safe?
Which is more common, "recite" or "rewrite"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "recite" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "rewrite" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #307,988 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "recite" and "rewrite" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "recite vs repute". 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 #307,988 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.