redline

American  

[red-lahyn, red-lahyn] / ˈrɛdˌlaɪn, ˈrɛdˈlaɪn /

Or red-line

verb (used with object)

redlined, redlining

1. to treat by redlining (an area or neighborhood).

2. to establish the recommended safe speed of (an airplane).

   The bomber is redlined at 650 miles an hour.

3. to draw a canceling red line through (an item on a list).

4. to mark or designate for cancellation, rejection, dismissal, or the like.

   club members redlined for unpaid dues.

5. to cause (an airplane) to be grounded.

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verb (used without object)

redlined, redlining

1. to engage in redlining.

noun

1. Automotive.

   1. the maximum rotational speed, or angular velocity, of the engine crankshaft that is considered safe: often measured in rpm.

   2. a red line or boundary of a red area that delineates such a value, as on a tachometer.

redline British  

/ ˈrɛdˌlaɪn /

verb

1. (esp of a bank or group of banks) to refuse a loan to (a person or country) because of the presumed risks involved

2. to restrict people's access to goods or services on the basis of the area in which they live

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Other Word Forms

• redliner
  noun

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Etymology

Origin of redline

First recorded in 1940–45; red ¹ + line ¹

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Explanation

To redline is to deny someone a loan based on where they live. This discriminatory practice is based on identifying neighborhoods with many residents who are poor, Black, or members of other ethnic minorities. It was once common for banks to redline, based on the bigoted belief that nonwhite people were less likely to repay loans. Other kinds of redlining include denying people insurance, healthcare, voting access, and fresh food because of their address. Prior to the 1960s, to redline was to "mark in red ink." The term's current definition came from the practice of marking areas on a map to delineate the neighborhoods in which non-white people and other ethnic minorities lived.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

redline redlined redlining

“For something that’s such a huge chunk of the budget, I’d redline it more and see exactly what’s going to what,” she said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 3, 2026

Kazakhstan's Rybakina, whose power from the baseline is among the very best when she finds her groove, continued to redline in the second set.

From BBC ● Aug. 29, 2025

A lone rider leaves the redline at Union Station.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 20, 2025

“AI must be guided in a direction that is conducive to the progress of humanity, so there should be a redline in AI development — a red line that must not be crossed,” without elaborating.

From Seattle Times ● Jan. 18, 2024

They were past redline now, flying at 220 miles per hour and in danger of ripping the plane’s wings off.

From "Mountain of Fire" by Rebecca E. F. Barone

Back on the main stage, they redlined through “March of the Pigs” and seethed with fuzzbox rot on “Reptile.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2025

Weber’s métier is working in industrial corridors in redlined neighborhoods helping communities of color heal from the effects of environmental and social ills, often a lengthy and collaborative process.

From New York Times ● May 29, 2024

The researchers also investigated the possible sources of the NO2 and PM2.5 emissions affecting the previously redlined areas.

From Science Daily ● Feb. 21, 2024

In a statement Thursday, he said his administration “has taken significant steps to address the housing inequities of the past through substantial investments in formerly redlined communities.”

From Seattle Times ● Feb. 18, 2023

If you can get no information at all from automobile sources, you can make use—with great caution—of bicycle road maps, of the maps rather than the redlined routes.

From Two Thousand Miles on an Automobile Being a Desultory Narrative of a Trip Through New England, New York, Canada, and the West, By "Chauffeur" by Arthur Jerome Eddy

It brings to mind not just dressing and African-American fashions, but also the historically peripatetic nature of black communities due to the oppression of Jim Crow and redlining.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026

“This connects communities that were previously divided by redlining, and helps to connect communities that were divided through those historic wrongs to job opportunities, to healthcare centers and support,” Horvath said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 24, 2026

Bruins coach DeShaun Foster credited Gilmer’s early arrival for spring practice, a willingness to prove himself on special teams and a motor that requires continual monitoring by the coaching staff to prevent redlining.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 5, 2024

Insurance brokers who help affordable housing providers have been redoubling their efforts to overcome stereotypes, if not outright redlining discrimination, that historically tended to elevate rates in low-income neighborhoods.

From New York Times ● Jun. 7, 2024

He leaned forward to hunch over his desk, and ignoring Scott, he went back to redlining another writer's story.

From Terminal Compromise: computer terrorism: when privacy and freedom are the victims: a novel by Winn Schwartau

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