red-handed
adverb or adjective
red-hand·ed
ˈred-ˈhan-dəd 
: in the act of committing a crime or misdeed
caught red-handed
Examples of red-handed in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Authors deserve much more from a company that got caught red-handed stealing millions of books.
—
James Folta, Literary Hub, 8 Sep. 2025
Many of them were caught red-handed accepting bribes and sentenced to prison.
—Daria Kaleniuk, Foreign Affairs, 3 Sep. 2025
In June 2023, Priester was charged with two counts of grand larceny for allegedly stripping flagpoles in front of several Riverhead, N.Y., businesses — after two weeks of mysterious flag thefts — and was caught red-handed with the flagpole hooks.
—Theresa Braine, New York Daily News, 21 Aug. 2025
Meta caught about 135,000 of them sexualizing children red-handed.
—Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 1 Aug. 2025
And, last year, a cat was caught red-handed after coming home with the neighbor's chicken dinner in tow.
—Alice Gibbs, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 July 2025
After he's caught red-handed, the pilot goes to confront him when the captain stabs him before throwing him overboard.
—Esther Kang, People.com, 26 June 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
James Folta, Literary Hub, 8 Sep. 2025
Many of them were caught red-handed accepting bribes and sentenced to prison.
—Daria Kaleniuk, Foreign Affairs, 3 Sep. 2025
In June 2023, Priester was charged with two counts of grand larceny for allegedly stripping flagpoles in front of several Riverhead, N.Y., businesses — after two weeks of mysterious flag thefts — and was caught red-handed with the flagpole hooks.
—Theresa Braine, New York Daily News, 21 Aug. 2025
Meta caught about 135,000 of them sexualizing children red-handed.
—Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 1 Aug. 2025
And, last year, a cat was caught red-handed after coming home with the neighbor's chicken dinner in tow.
—Alice Gibbs, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 July 2025
After he's caught red-handed, the pilot goes to confront him when the captain stabs him before throwing him overboard.
—Esther Kang, People.com, 26 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Red-handed.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/red-handed. Accessed 9 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share