Which to use
“repeat” and “repent” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,080
- “repeat” frequency rank
- #18,416
- “repent” frequency rank
- 21496
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | repeat | repent |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To do or say again (and again). | To feel pain, sorrow, or regret for what one has done or omitted to do; the cause for repenting may be indicated with "of". |
Where the eye mixes repeat and repent
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between repeat and repent
A purely visual mix-up. repeat (/ɹɪˈpiːt/) and repent (/ɹɪˈpɛnt/) 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 a single letter - a in “repeat” becomes n in “repent”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 21496, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
repeat is recorded at frequency rank #3,080, classified as averb, pronounced /ɹɪˈpiːt/. repent is at rank #18,416, tagged as averb, pronounced /ɹɪˈpɛnt/.
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 21496, this pair ranks #423,500 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of repeat vs repent
Shared letters: eprt. Private to "repeat": a. Private to "repent": n.
"repeat" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC · "repent" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "repeat" for "repent" ever safe?
Which is more common, "repeat" or "repent"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "repeat" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "repent" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #423,500 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "repeat" and "repent" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "reheat vs repent". 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 #423,500 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.