Which to use
“restraining” is a noun and “retaining” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #15,490
- “restraining” frequency rank
- #9,951
- “retaining” frequency rank
- 25441
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | restraining | retaining |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | The act by which someone or something is restrained. | Of or pertaining to something that retains something else, as with a retaining wall. |
Letter map: restraining vs retaining
Shared letters muted; letters that set restraining and retaining apart highlighted. Shared run: 9.
Grammar separator: restraining vs retaining
Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: restraining is anoun and retaininganadjective. On the page they differ by 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 25441, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
restraining is recorded at frequency rank #15,490, classified as anoun. retaining is at rank #9,951, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ɹɪˈteɪnɪŋ/.
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 25441, this pair ranks #394,254 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of restraining vs retaining
Shared letters: aeginrt. Private to "restraining": s. Private to "retaining": -.
"restraining" · 11 letters · shape CVCCCVVCVCC · "retaining" · 9 letters · shape CVCVVCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- restraining ← erstraining · resrtaining · resstraining · restarining · restraiinng · restrainign · restrainingg · restraininng
- retaining ← ertaining · reatining · retaiinng · retainign · retainingg · retaininng · retainnig · retainning
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "restraining" and "retaining" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary English text, does "restraining" or "retaining" show up more?
Useful next steps
Done with this confusable. These links stay specific to "restraining" and "retaining".
- Full dictionary entry for "restraining" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "retaining" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #394,254 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "restraining" and "retaining" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "retaining vs retaking". 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 #394,254 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.