noun

redline

REHD-lyn

noun

The maximum safe speed or limit at which a machine, especially an engine, is designed to run.

"The tachometer needle crept toward the redline as he floored the accelerator."

verb

To mark up a document with corrections or proposed changes.

"The lawyer redlined the contract and sent it back for review."

To unfairly deny or restrict services like loans or insurance to people in certain areas, often based on race.

"Banks were accused of redlining low-income neighbourhoods for decades."

How to Use Redline

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishDepending on context: an engine's speed limit, marked-up edits on a document, or discriminatory denial of services to an area.

Common pairings

hit the redline redline a document redlining practices

redlined past tense, redlines plural, redlines singular

Study it as flashcards or scroll it in Flow — saved to your collection.

Can you complete this real example?

The tachometer needle crept toward the _____ as he floored the accelerator.

From red plus line, from the practice of marking corrections in red pen and the red zone on a tachometer.

nine mine wine line sine dine fine vine pine tine Eine thine