Which to use
“retaining” is an adjective and “retaking” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #9,951
- “retaining” frequency rank
- #49,592
- “retaking” frequency rank
- 59543
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | retaining | retaking |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Of or pertaining to something that retains something else, as with a retaining wall. | The act of taking again. |
Letter map: retaining vs retaking
Shared letters muted; letters that set retaining and retaking apart highlighted. Shared run: 7.
Grammar separator: retaining vs retaking
Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: retaining is anadjective and retakinganoun. On the page they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 59543, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
retaining is recorded at frequency rank #9,951, classified as anadj, pronounced /ɹɪˈteɪnɪŋ/. retaking is at rank #49,592, tagged as anoun.
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 59543, this pair ranks #105,513 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of retaining vs retaking
Shared letters: aeginrt. Private to "retaining": -. Private to "retaking": k.
"retaining" · 9 letters · shape CVCVVCVCC · "retaking" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "retaining" and "retaking" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary English text, does "retaining" or "retaking" show up more?
What to do next
You've compared "retaining" and "retaking". Here's where to go from here.
- Full dictionary entry for "retaining" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "retaking" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #105,513 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "retaining" and "retaking" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "retaking vs revoking". 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 #105,513 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.