red

I. adjective (redder; reddest) Etymology: Middle English, from Old English rēad; akin to Old High German rōt red, Latin ruber & rufus, Greek erythros Date: before 12th century 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 II. noun Date: before 12th century 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 III. abbreviation reduce; reduction