red-letter
Americanadjective
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marked by red letters, as festival days in the church calendar.
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memorable; especially important or happy.
a red-letter day in his life.
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(of a Bible) having the quoted words of Jesus appear in red type.
a red-letter edition;
the red-letter New Testament presented at her baptism.
Etymology
Origin of red-letter
First recorded in 1660–70
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
This makes July 10, 2026, the red-letter day because taxpayers usually have three years after filing a return to make a claim disputing a penalty, according to Collins.
From MarketWatch ● May 27, 2026
SpaceX’s big news, along with Anthropic’s showing potential to turn a profit far sooner than expected and OpenAI’s prepping for its public debut, made yesterday AI’s red-letter day.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 21, 2026
This was a red-letter day for Adelaide-born Head as he scored a stunning century in front of a packed crowd on familiar territory.
From BBC ● Dec. 7, 2024
Saturday was a red-letter day for the history of art in Southern California.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 21, 2022
“Well,” he said, “I have to note my observations in the log. And you, as my collaborator, may also make a note on this red-letter day.”
From "The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate" by Jacqueline Kelly
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
