redeeming feature

Idioms  

1. A good quality or aspect that makes up for other drawbacks, as in The house isn't very attractive, but the garden is the redeeming feature. This idiom, first recorded in 1827, uses redeem in the sense of “compensate.”

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

redeeming feature

Its redeeming feature was supposed to be re-establishing freedom of navigation in the Strait while nuclear talks proceeded.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 7, 2026

They offered not one redeeming feature as they slumped again, the visiting fans suffering as they made their way home from a freezing west London night.

From BBC ● Oct. 25, 2025

“I couldn’t find a single redeeming feature about this utterly loathsome figure.”

From Los Angeles Times ● May 6, 2023

But the store has one great redeeming feature: It does not charge for postage, which is considerable across the ocean.

From New York Times ● Jul. 18, 2018

Sir William seemed to answer by saying the one redeeming feature of the business was that it was too awful to last.

From The Messenger by Elizabeth Robins