DictionaryAI

red

RED/ɹɛd/

Adjectiveredder, reddest

Noun pluralreds

25 meanings of red

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  1. 1
    colored that wayadjective
    Of the color of blood, ripe strawberries and the setting sun; of a playing card, belonging to hearts or diamonds.

    A red ribbon was tied around the gift.

    The traffic lights glowed red through the fog.

    UsageCompares as redder, reddest; works after verbs too: glow red, turn red.

    Similarscarlet, crimson

    Note

    Flowers "glowed red and golden" in Tolkien's The Fellowship of the Ring (1954). It has long anchored similes too, as in Shakespeare's "as red as any rose" in The Second Part of Henry the Fourth.

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

    • Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring describes flowers as having “glowed red and golden”; this is narration, not character dialogue. readinggroupguides.com
    • The Fellowship of the Ring was first published in 1954. tolkienestate.com
    • “As red as any rose” occurs in Shakespeare’s The Second Part of Henry the Fourth, spoken by Mistress Quickly to Doll Tearsheet. shakespeare.mit.edu
  2. 2
    the color itselfnouncountable or uncountable
    The color of blood, strawberries, and the setting sun, evoked by the longest visible wavelengths of light, around 625 to 740 nanometers; also a primary additive color.

    On a screen, red combines with green and blue to make white.

    The artist used red sparingly across the gray canvas.

  3. 3
    winenouncountable or uncountable
    Wine of a red color, made from dark-skinned grapes.

    She prefers a full-bodied red with grilled steak.

    The waiter recommended a smooth red from the local vineyards.

    UsageUsed once wine is the topic: a glass of red, a smooth red.

    Oppositewhite

    Note

    It pairs naturally with white, as in a line from Billy Joel's song "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant" (1977), where the singer simply orders one of each and lets the two colors name the wines.

  4. 4
    adjective
    Of hair, fur or other natural material, having an orange, orange-brown or reddish-brown color.

    His red beard made him easy to spot in the crowd.

    Both children inherited their mother's red hair.

    Similarginger, auburn, copper, russet

  5. 5
    adjective
    Flushed with a deeper color than usual, as from embarrassment, anger, or sunburn.

    He turned red with anger and stormed out of the room.

    Their faces were red and chapped from the cold wind.

    UsageUsually turn or go red, often with a feeling: turned red with anger.

    Similarflushed, ruddy, crimson, scarlet, florid

    Oppositepale

  6. 6
    sending offnouncolloquialcountablesports
    The card that a referee shows a player to send them off the field.

    The defender picked up a straight red for a reckless tackle in the 60th minute.

    Two reds in the first half left the visitors with nine players.

    UsageOften a straight red for one serious foul; a player gets or picks up a red.

    Note

    A word from match reports and commentary, where the full red card is clipped to red. A straight red is shown for one serious offense, as opposed to the red that follows a second yellow card; either way the player leaves and the team plays one short. Its milder partner, the yellow, is a caution rather than a dismissal.

    Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 4 facts

    • A straight red punishes a serious sending-off offence directly. premierleague.com
    • A second yellow card results in a sending-off. theifab.com
    • A player sent off during the match leaves and cannot be replaced, reducing the team's playing strength. theifab.com
    • Yellow communicates a caution; red communicates a dismissal. theifab.com
  7. 7
    traffic lightnouncolloquialcountable or uncountable
    A traffic signal showing red, telling vehicles to stop.

    The taxi sped through a red just as it was changing.

    Drivers must come to a full stop at a red.

    Oppositegreen

    Note

    Drivers' shorthand that leans on the article: you wait at the red and set off at the green, a pairing of the two lights that Tom Waits sings about in "(Looking for) The Heart of Saturday Night" (1974). The same traffic-light logic, red as the signal to halt, gives the safeword its force.

  8. 8
    US RepublicanadjectiveUS
    Supportive of, related to, or controlled by the U.S. Republican Party.

    The election map turned red as Republican wins piled up.

    He represents a deeply red district in the South.

    UsageMostly before a noun, a red state, a red district, with no link to socialism.

    SimilarRepublican, conservative

    Oppositeblue

  9. 9
    animal's short namenouncolloquialcountable
    Any of the red-coated forms of an animal, for instance the red kangaroo or the red squirrel.

    A red can cover huge distances in a single leap.

    The reds in this forest are smaller than the grays.

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Origin

Old English rēad became Middle English red. Before that came Proto-West Germanic *raud and Proto-Germanic *raudaz, which go back to the Proto-Indo-European root *h₁rewdʰ-. Among its many relatives are Dutch rood, German rot, Latin ruber, Ancient Greek ἐρυθρός (eruthrós), and Sanskrit रुधिर (rudhirá, "red, bloody").

Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 8 facts

  • Old English rēad developed into Middle English red. en.wiktionary.org
  • Old English rēad descends from Proto-West Germanic *raud and Proto-Germanic *raudaz. en.wiktionary.org
  • The Germanic forms ultimately derive from the Proto-Indo-European root *h₁rewdʰ-. en.wiktionary.org
  • Dutch rood is cognate with English red. en.wiktionary.org
  • German rot is cognate with English red. en.wiktionary.org
  • Latin ruber, Ancient Greek ἐρυθρός and Sanskrit rudhirá are relatives of English red through the same Indo-European root. en.wikipedia.org
  • The Ancient Greek form ἐρυθρός is transliterated eruthrós. en.wiktionary.org
  • Sanskrit रुधिर has the transliteration rudhirá and means red or bloody. en.wiktionary.org