# retiring vs returning

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### retiring
*adjective · IPA /ɹəˈtaɪ(ə)ɹɪŋ/ · frequency rank #9,660*
introverted, liking privacy and seclusion.

### returning
*verb · IPA /ɹɪˈtɜːnɪŋ/ · frequency rank #3,081*
present participle and gerund of return

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/vs/retiring-vs-returning