# redd

Pronunciation: say "RED" /ɹɛd/

## Noun

1. A nest dug into riverbed gravel where a fish deposits and buries its eggs.
   - Simple: A shallow nest that a fish digs in gravel to lay and cover its eggs.
   - _Female trout sweep out a redd in clean gravel before spawning._
   - _Biologists counted dozens of redds along the spawning stream._

## Verb

2. To clean something and set it in order, putting each object back in its proper place. *(dialectal, Pennsylvania)*
   - Simple: To clean a place and put everything back where it belongs.
   - _She redd the cluttered desk and filed every loose paper._
   - _Could you redd these shelves before we leave?_
3. To tidy a space by clearing away clutter and mess. *(dialectal, Northern England, Scotland)*
   - Simple: To clear away mess so a space looks tidy and neat.
   - _The crew redd the campsite before hiking out at dawn._
   - _Everyone pitched in to redd after the celebration._
4. To settle a dispute, especially a quarrel between people. *(dialectal, Northern England, Scotland)*
   - Simple: To end an argument by making peace between the people involved.
   - _The chief was called upon to redd the long feud between the clans._
   - _He redd the argument with a few calm words._
5. To separate people who are fighting. *(dialectal, Northern England, Scotland)*
   - Simple: To step between people who are fighting and pull them apart.
   - _Bystanders moved quickly to redd the combatants outside the tavern._
   - _He redd the scuffling men and held them apart._
6. To comb the hair until it lies smooth. *(dialectal, Northern England, Scotland)*
   - Simple: To comb your hair so it lies smooth and neat.
   - _The maid redd the child's hair into neat braids._
   - _Before church, she would redd her hair carefully._
7. To fix or mark out the boundaries of land. *(dialectal, Northern England, Scotland)*
   - Simple: To set the edges of a piece of land so people know where it ends.
   - _The two estates hired men to redd the disputed border._
   - _Elders gathered to redd the village limits after the flood changed the river's course._

## Verb

8. Past tense of rede. Archaic. *(archaic, UK)* — simple past and past participle of rede
   - Simple: Past tense of rede, an old word meaning to advise. You will find it mostly in old writing.
9. Past tense of read. An obsolete spelling. *(obsolete)* — simple past and past participle of read
   - Simple: Past tense of read. An old spelling once used for the past of read.
10. To loosen and free something that has become tangled or knotted. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: To loosen and free something that has become tangled or caught.
   - _Fishermen would redd their nets each morning before setting out._
   - _The shepherd redd the lamb's wool from the thorns._
11. To free someone from an embarrassing or shameful situation. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: To help someone out of an awkward or shameful spot.
   - _A clever excuse redd the young clerk from public disgrace._
   - _Only a quick apology could redd them from so awkward a scene._

## Origin

**Meanings 3–7, 10–11** — This is a fusion of two Middle English verbs: redden ('to save, rescue, rid, clear'), from Old English hreddan and Proto-Germanic *hradjaną, and reden ('to clean up, clear'), from Old English ġerǣdan ('to put in order, arrange'), from Proto-Germanic *garaidijaną ('to arrange'). Related to rid and ready.
**Meaning 2** — From Middle English, from Old Norse ryðja and Middle Low German (compare Dutch redden); in modern use, however, it is probably actually a back-formation from ready.
**Meaning 1** — The origin is obscure, possibly from the act of the fish scooping out and clearing a spawning place.
**Meanings 8–9** — From the archaic verb rede or read.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/redd (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).