Root vs. Route – What’s the Gist?
Reading these two English words is straightforward enough because it is doubtful that anyone would confuse a plant vestige and a busy thoroughfare. However, both words do share the same pronunciation which is \root\; not to mention, the word root has additional meanings and parts of speech.
- Root is a noun, which means the underground part of a plant or bottom part of a tooth.
- Route is a noun that means a traveled way, a means of access, or an assigned territory.
How to Use Root in a Sentence
Root definition: Although the noun is likely the first object that comes to mind, root is also a verb. As a transitive verb, it means to implant or to develop roots. As an intransitive verb, it means to cheer, support, or encourage a team.
For example:
- When the gardener tried to pull up the potato plants, the roots clung to the ground tenaciously. (Noun)
- The pioneer uprooted his family to find a better life further west. (Past Tense Verb)
- After being asked about her favorite team, the woman declared, “I root for the Steelers!” (Present Tense Verb)
The nuances in the word root are found in its different parts of speech.
How to Use Route in a Sentence
Route definition: Route is a noun meaning a direction someone takes when traveling a highway or covering a territory, like a paper route or a bus route. In addition to being pronounced \root\, route can also be pronounced \rowt\.
For example:
- S. Route 40 is often called The National Road. (Proper Noun)
- Although the address was entered correctly, the GPS took the family a circuitous route home. (Noun)
- Today’s newspaper route has fewer customers than in earlier times. (Noun)
Although both words are used primarily as nouns, you need to determine if you are describing the bottom of a plant or tooth or if you mean a directional element, such as a highway.
Outside Examples of Root vs. Route
- Ruthie’s life has always involved putting down roots, and the biggest taproot of all has been her life in the church, as a girl in the 1920s growing up in Clemson, South Carolina, as a student at Winthrop College, now Winthrop University, and as a young wife in September 1942. –Newsday
- The spiritual was deeply rooted in the oral tradition and often created spontaneously, one person starting a tune and another joining until a new song was added to the community repertoire. The sophisticated result was beautifully described in 1862 by Philadelphia musicologist and piano teacher Lucy McKim Garrison. –Houston Chronicle
- Messages filled with well wishes and advice were jotted on napkins, some read aloud on the intercom by a Southwest flight attendant, as Dustin and Caren Moore cradled their newly adopted eight-day-old baby en route to Long Beach Airport. –Orange County Register
- NJ Transit could increase ridership, get more people out of cars and reduce air pollution if the agency ran buses every 15 minutes on 14 routes identified in two studies commissioned by the New Jersey Sierra Club Chapter. –The Star-Ledger
Phrases That Use Root and Route
There are some phrases that use the word root or route, including:
Root cause: The foundational basis for something that has come to fruition.
- The root cause for higher incidents of teen traffic accidents is inexperience.
Rooting around: To search areas in a thorough or frantic manner
- Looking for her driver’s license, the woman found herself rooting around her purse.
En route: On the way.
- While en route to the doctor, the driver encountered a detour.
Route 66: Famous American highway originally spanning from Chicago to Santa Monica, CA.
- The family decided to experience some history by traveling a portion of Route 66.
How to Remember These Words
The best way to decide which word you want is to understand the substantive you require.
Are you looking for something referring to the bottom of a plant or the expression of encouragement? Then choose the word root. If you want to express the idea of transportation, then pick route.
A suggestion to help you remember the difference between is to think of the double o’s in root reflects the same sounds as the word woot. When rooting for a team, often people yell, “Woot!”
A mnemonic device for the word route is found in the three letters in the middle of the word. You have to go out when driving on a route.
For example:
- His enthusiastic woot revealed the team he was rooting for.
- The family was out and about looking for the route.
Article Summary
Is root or route correct? While these two homophones sound the same in English, they are not synonyms. If it’s a noun that you need, ask yourself which object you want—either an underground stem or an above ground road to pick the correct object.
If it’s a verb, use root. Because you are either want to express the action of implanting or of cheering.
- Root is a noun or a verb.
- Route is always a noun.