Which to use
“recitar” and “retar” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #30,220
- “recitar” frequency rank
- #37,304
- “retar” frequency rank
- 67524
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | recitar | retar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Decir en voz alta y ante un público un discurso, mensaje, cuento o texto. | Dicho de un noble: acusar ante el rey a otro noble de alevosía, quedando obligado el primero a mantener la denuncia en buena lid. |
Where the eye mixes recitar and retar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. recitar runs 7 letters (CVCVCVC) against retar's 5 (CVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses recitar with retar
A purely visual mix-up. recitar ([resiˈt̪aɾ]) and retar ([reˈt̪aɾ]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 67524, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
recitar is recorded at frequency rank #30,220, classified as averb, pronounced [resiˈt̪aɾ]. retar is at rank #37,304, tagged as averb, pronounced [reˈt̪aɾ].
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 67524, this pair ranks #36,892 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of recitar vs retar
Shared letters: aert. Private to "recitar": ci. Private to "retar": -.
"recitar" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC · "retar" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "recitar" for "retar" ever safe?
Which is more common, "recitar" or "retar"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "recitar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "retar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #36,892 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "recitar" and "retar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "renard vs retar". 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 #36,892 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.