Which to use
“repetition” is a noun and “repetitive” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #15,489
- “repetition” frequency rank
- #13,796
- “repetitive” frequency rank
- 29285
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | repetition | repetitive |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | The act or an instance of repeating or being repeated. | Happening many times in a similar way; containing repetition; repeating. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set repetition and repetitive apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: repetition is /ˌɹɛp.əˈtɪʃ.ən/ while repetitive is /ɹɪˈpɛtɪtɪv/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 29285, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
repetition is recorded at frequency rank #15,489, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˌɹɛp.əˈtɪʃ.ən/. repetitive is at rank #13,796, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ɹɪˈpɛtɪtɪv/.
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 29285, this pair ranks #364,253 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of repetition vs repetitive
Shared letters: eiprt. Private to "repetition": no. Private to "repetitive": v.
"repetition" · 10 letters · shape CVCVCVCVVC · "repetitive" · 10 letters · shape CVCVCVCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- repetition ← erpetition · reeptition · repeittion · repetiiton · repetision · repetitino · repetitionn · repetitoin
- repetitive ← erpetitive · reeptitive · repeittive · repetiitve · repetitiev · repetitivve · repetittive · repetitvie
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "repetition" and "repetitive" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "repetition" or "repetitive"?
Remembering repetition vs repetitive
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “repetition”; for an adjective, it's “repetitive”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “repetition” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable