retiradavsretirarConfusable pair

Quick tell: retirada is a noun, retirar is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“retirada” is a noun and “retirar” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#5,885
“retirada” frequency rank
#5,429
“retirar” frequency rank
11314
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature retirada retirar
Definition Acción o efecto de retirar o de retirarse. Quitar o alejar a algo o alguien de una cosa o persona, de modo que no estén en contacto.

Where the eye mixes retirada and retirar

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.

8 ch
retirada
7 ch
retirar

Visual trap between retirada and retirar

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: retirada is [ret̪iˈɾað̞a] while retirar is [ret̪iˈɾaɾ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 11314, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

retirada is recorded at frequency rank #5,885, classified as anoun, pronounced [ret̪iˈɾað̞a]. retirar is at rank #5,429, tagged as averb, pronounced [ret̪iˈɾaɾ].

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 11314, this pair ranks #295,546 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of retirada vs retirar

Shared letters: aeirt. Private to "retirada": d. Private to "retirar": -.

"retirada" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVCV  ·  "retirar" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • retiradaertirada · reitrada · retiarda · retiraad · retiradda · retirdaa · retirrada · retriada
  • retirarertirar · reitrar · retiarr · retirarr · retirra · retirrar · retriar · rettirar

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "retirada" and "retirar" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "retirada" is a noun and "retirar" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Frequency check: "retirada" vs "retirar" - which ranks higher?
"retirar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,429 in our Spanish list, against #5,885 for "retirada". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "retirada" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "retirar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #295,546 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "retirada" and "retirar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "regirán vs retirar". 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 #295,546 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list