I sometimes see these words written interchangeably.<\/p>\n
Problem:<\/strong> Explanation:<\/strong> The verb “retch” comes from an Old Norse word that means to hawk or spit<\/em> and, when spoken, sounds like hawking or spitting.<\/p>\n The word “wretch” — spelled W-R-E-T-C-H — is a noun that dates back to before 900 and means an unhappy person or a person of base character<\/em>.<\/p>\n The noun “wretch” comes from the Old English word “wrecca”, which means exile<\/em> and comes from the German word “Recke”, which means warrior<\/em> and comes from the Old Norse word “rekkr”, which means man<\/em>.<\/p>\n So somehow a word for “man” transformed into a word for “warrior”, which transformed into a word for “exile”, which transformed into a word that refers to an unhappy person or a person of base character.<\/p>\n Many readers may know the noun “wretch” from the hymn “Amazing Grace”, which includes the lyrics “Amazing Grace! How sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me …”<\/p>\n Solution:<\/strong> I sometimes see these words written interchangeably. Problem: The words “retch” and “wretch” are not synonyms. Explanation: The word “retch” — spelled R-E-T-C-H — is a verb that dates back to the mid 1500s and means to vomit when used with an object and means to make an effort to vomit when used without an…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-616","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-versus"],"yoast_head":"\n
\nThe words “retch” and “wretch” are not<\/em> synonyms.<\/p>\n
\nThe word “retch” — spelled R-E-T-C-H — is a verb that dates back to the mid 1500s and means to vomit<\/em> when used with an object and means to make an effort to vomit<\/em> when used without an object.<\/p>\n
\nTo distinguish the “retch” that starts with an “r” from the “wretch” that starts with a “w”, remember that the latter is a noun by remembering that another, similar-sounding noun is “witch”, which also starts with a “w”.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"