Master confusing words with ease
Retch vs. Wretch
Retch
/retʃ/Examples:
The smell made him retch violently.I start to retch at the thought of eating that.She turned away, trying to suppress the retch.
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
Wretch
/retʃ/Examples:
The poor wretch had lost everything in the fire.Even the villain was a wretch seeking redemption.Her heart went out to the lonely wretch on the street.
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
Ways to tell them apart:
- Remember that wretch starts with a w, like woe, which is what a wretched person often experiences.
- Retch starts with an r, like retching sound, which is something you might hear when someone is about to vomit.
- Think of retch as something you do, like an action, while wretch is someone or something that is in a state of suffering.
- The w in wretch is silent but gives the word its identity tied to misery, whereas retch sounds more abrupt and action-oriented.
- Wretch, ending in -ch, refers to a beCHever, whereas retch, also ending in -ch, denotes an action riTCh you.
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