red

¹red

adjective \ˈred\

red·derred·dest

Definition of RED

1

a : of the color red

b : having red as a distinguishing color

2

a (1) : flushed especially with anger or embarrassment (2) : ruddy, florid (3) : being or having skin of a coppery hue

b : bloodshot <eyes red from crying>

c : being in the color range between a moderate orange and russet or bay

d : tinged with red : reddish

3

: heated to redness : glowing

4

a : inciting or endorsing radical social or political change especially by force

b often capitalized : communist

c often capitalized : of or relating to a communist country and especially to the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics

5

: tending to support Republicans in a general election <red states>

— red in tooth and claw

: characterized by or displaying brutal emotion or violent behavior

Examples of RED

1. a shiny red fire truck
2. His face turns red when he gets angry.

Origin of RED

Middle English, from Old English rēad; akin to Old High German rōt red, Latin ruber & rufus, Greek erythros

First Known Use: before 12th century

Related to RED

Synonyms

blooming, florid, flush, full-blooded, glowing, ruddy, rosy, rubicund, sanguine

Antonyms

ashen, ashy, doughy, livid, lurid, mealy, pale, paled, palish, pallid, pasty, peaked, peaky, sallow, sallowish, wan

Related Words

bronzed, brown, suntanned, tanned; bloomy, blowsy (also blowzy), blushing, flushed, pink, pinkish, warm; cherubic

Near Antonyms

waxen, waxy; blanched, white, whitened; anemic, sick, sickly; bloodless, cadaverous; whey-faced, white-faced

Other Color Terms

argentine, cerise, cerulean, cyan, ocher, perse, puce, taupe, vermilion

²red

noun

Definition of RED

1

: a color whose hue resembles that of blood or of the ruby or is that of the long-wave extreme of the visible spectrum

2

: red clothing <the lady in red>

3

: one that is of a red or reddish color: as

a : red wine

b : an animal with a red or reddish coat

4

a : a pigment or dye that colors red

b : a shade or tint of red

5

a : one who advocates the violent overthrow of an existing social or political order

b capitalized : communist

6

[from the bookkeeping practice of entering debit items in red ink] : the condition of showing a loss —usually used with the <in the red> — compare black

Examples of RED

1. The artist uses red to symbolize passion.
2. a lady dressed in red
3. the reds and oranges of autumn leaves

First Known Use of RED

before 12th century

Related to RED

Synonyms

insurgent, insurrectionary, insurrectionist, mutineer, rebel, revolter, revolutionary, revolutionist

Antonyms

capitalist

Related Words

challenger, defier, insubordinate, oppositionist, recusant, refuser, resistant, resister; anarch, anarchist; discontent, extremist, malcontent, radical

Near Antonyms

loyalist, patriot, supporter; counterinsurgent, counterrevolutionary, counterrevolutionist

Other Color Terms

argentine, cerise, cerulean, cyan, ocher, perse, puce, taupe, vermilion

red

abbreviation

Definition of RED

reduce; reduction

Red

geographical name \ˈred\

Definition of RED

1

river 1018 miles (1638 kilometers) flowing E on Okla.-Tex. boundary & into the Atchafalaya & Mississippi in Louisiana

2

river N cen United States & S cen Canada flowing N on Minn.-N.Dak. boundary & into Lake Winnipeg in Manitoba

3

— see arctic red

4

or Hong \ˈhȯŋ\ or (in China) Yuan \yu̇-ˈän, -ˈan\ river 500 miles (805 kilometers) SE Asia rising in cen Yunnan, China, & flowing SE across N Vietnam into Gulf of Tonkin

Rhymes with RED

bed, bread, dead, dread, ed, fed, head, lead, med, ped, read, red, redd, said, shed, shred, sled, spread, stead, ted, thread, tread, wed, zed