Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Menu
×

An Encyclopædia Britannica Company

See What's Trending Now See More Trending Words

red ink

noun

Definition of red ink

  1. 1 :  a business loss :  deficit

  2. 2 :  the condition of showing a business loss

See red ink defined for English-language learners

Read the Latest from M-W

time-traveler-quiz-which-word-came-first
Time Traveler Quiz: Which Word Came First?
image1458426927
Good Words for Strong Flavors
video-title-words-of-the-year-1066
Words of the Year: 1066
alt-599492594f435
How 'Wonderful' Lost Its Sense of Wonder

Origin and Etymology of red ink

from the use of red ink in financial statements to indicate a loss

RED INK Defined for English Language Learners

red ink

noun

Definition of red ink for English Language Learners

  • —used to describe a situation in which a business, organization, etc., is spending more money than it is earning and has a lot of debt

Learn More about red ink

  1. See words that rhyme with red ink

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up red ink? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show hide

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

WORD OF THE DAY

oppugn

play

to fight against or to call in question

Get Word of the Day daily email!

TRENDING NOW

  1. repugnant Trump clarifies his position on racism

  2. white nationalist, white supremacist Trending in 2017

  3. bereft "Lacking something needed, wanted, or expected"

  4. impanel "To choose people to serve on a jury"

  5. cosmopolitan "Worldly"

SEE ALL

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play

alt-599492594f435
How 'Wonderful' Lost Its Sense of Wonder

A case of semantic bleaching

dog-covering-face
Don't Let Reading This Be Another 'Coulda' 'Shoulda' 'Woulda'

PSA: They're three separate words.

image1458426927
Food Words for Strong Flavors

A tasting menu of vivid flavor descriptions

alt-5993066a3afad
What's the Plural of 'Maitre d''?

Use this word to confuse a French speaker.

Ask the Editors

video-title-words-of-the-year-1066
Words of the Year: 1066

Or, Why Pig Meat is Called 'Pork' and Cow Meat is Called 'Beef'

payday
How Often Is 'Biweekly'?

Don't get us started on 'bimonthly'

video-irregardless-grammar-peeve-blend-of-the-synonyms-irrespective-and-regardless
Irregardless

It is in fact a real word (but that doesn't mean you should use it).

video-moose-goose-weird-plurals
Weird Plurals

One goose, two geese. One moose, two... moose. What's up with that?

Word Games

time-traveler-quiz-which-word-came-first
Time Traveler Quiz: Which Word Came First?

Which word entered the English language first?

Take the quiz
name-more-food
Name More Food!

Test your knowledge of food vocabulary!

Take the quiz
How Strong Is Your Vocabulary?
How Strong Is Your Vocabulary?

Test your vocabulary with our 10-question quiz!

Take the quiz
SCRABBLE® Sprint
SCRABBLE® Sprint

SCRABBLE® fans, sharpen your skills!

Play the game