retake vs retrace, What's the Difference?

Which to use

“retake” and “retrace” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#20,209
“retake” frequency rank: #42,380
“retrace” frequency rank: 62589
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	retake	retrace
Definition	To take something again.	To trace (a line, etc. in drawing) again.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set retake and retrace apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch

retake

7 ch

retrace

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. retake (/ɹiːˈteɪk/) and retrace (/ɹiːˈtɹeɪs/) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 62589, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

retake is recorded at frequency rank #20,209, classified as averb, pronounced /ɹiːˈteɪk/. retrace is at rank #42,380, tagged as averb, pronounced /ɹiːˈtɹeɪs/.

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 62589, this pair ranks #87,666 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of retake vs retrace

Shared letters: aert. Private to "retake": k. Private to "retrace": c.

"retake" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV · "retrace" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

retake ← ertake · reatke · retaek · retakke · retkae · rettake · rretake · rteake
retrace ← ertrace · rertace · retarce · retracce · retraec · retrcae · retrrace · rettrace

Frequency comparison

retake#20,209

retrace#42,380

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "retake" and "retrace" be used interchangeably?

No. They are said differently (/ɹiːˈteɪk/ versus /ɹiːˈtɹeɪs/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.

Which is more common, "retake" or "retrace"?

"retake" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #20,209 in our English list, against #42,380 for "retrace". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering retake vs retrace

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “retake” entry
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