repararvsretardarWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“reparar” and “retardar” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#8,951
“reparar” frequency rank
#25,804
“retardar” frequency rank
34755
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature reparar retardar
Definition consertar tornar tardio

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set reparar and retardar apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
reparar
8 ch
retardar

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. reparar (/Rɨ.pɐ.ˈɾaɾ/) and retardar (/Rɨ.tɐɾ.ˈdaɾ/) 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 34755, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

reparar is recorded at frequency rank #8,951, classified as averb, pronounced /Rɨ.pɐ.ˈɾaɾ/. retardar is at rank #25,804, tagged as averb, pronounced /Rɨ.tɐɾ.ˈdaɾ/.

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 34755, this pair ranks #32,431 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of reparar vs retardar

Shared letters: aer. Private to "reparar": p. Private to "retardar": dt.

"reparar" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC  ·  "retardar" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • repararerparar · reaprar · repaarr · repararr · reparra · reparrar · repparar · repraar
  • retardarertardar · reatrdar · retadrar · retaradr · retardarr · retarddar · retardra · retarrdar

Frequency comparison

reparar#8,951
retardar#25,804

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "reparar" and "retardar" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/Rɨ.pɐ.ˈɾaɾ/ versus /Rɨ.tɐɾ.ˈdaɾ/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "reparar" or "retardar"?
"reparar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #8,951 in our Portuguese list, against #25,804 for "retardar". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering reparar vs retardar

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 “reparar” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list