redneck

American  

[red-nek] / ˈrɛdˌnɛk /

Or red-neck

noun

• rednecks
  plural

1. an uneducated white farm laborer, especially from the South.

2. a bigot or reactionary, especially from the rural working class.

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adjective

1. Also red-necked narrow, prejudiced, or reactionary.

   a redneck attitude.

   Synonyms:

   intolerant, narrow-minded, biased

   Antonyms:

   impartial, unbiased, tolerant, broad-minded, open-minded, fair-minded

redneck British  

/ ˈrɛdˌnɛk /

noun

1. (in the southwestern US) a poor uneducated White farm worker

2. a person or institution that is extremely reactionary

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adjective

1. reactionary and bigoted

   redneck laws

redneck Cultural  

1. A slang term, usually for a rural white southerner who is politically conservative, racist, and a religious fundamentalist (see fundamentalism). This term is generally considered offensive. It originated in reference to agricultural workers, alluding to how the back of a person's neck will be burned by the sun if he works long hours in the fields.

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Sensitive Note

All the senses of this term are used with disparaging intent, implying negative stereotypical traits such as ignorance and narrow-mindedness.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• rednecks
  plural

Etymology

Origin of redneck

An Americanism dating back to 1820–30; red ¹ + neck

Compare meaning

How does redneck compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• hillbilly vs. redneck

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

redneck rednecks

"When you're not respected, it's hard to respect the people that don't respect you... I'm the hated redneck, right? That's me. Not that I did anything wrong, I'm just born here."

From BBC ● Jul. 11, 2026

A new vanguard—led by the beer-swilling redneck Stone Cold Steve Austin—would bring the art form into the modern age by embracing bad taste.

From Slate ● Jun. 11, 2026

“I’m, I guess, like a redneck in Southern California,” he joked.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 24, 2026

“She calls herself a redneck environmentalist,” Kreider said during a visit at Gilbert’s home.

From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2025

He fiddled with the dial a moment, landing on some mariachi music that was as equally redneck and sappy in its own way as were the cowboy songs.

From "The Milagro Beanfield War" by John Nichols

“They’re just like all of y’all’s grandparents — I mean, to the extent y’all’s grandparents are rednecks from south Georgia,” he said to laughter.

From Seattle Times ● May 23, 2023

When they joked about rednecks and Klan members, I responded that the countryside would remind them of the villages of our parents, while the lifestyle meshes well with our rancho libertarian ways.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 13, 2023

But, as local historian Joe Nick Patoski said, one thing united hippies and rednecks, cowboys and stoners, slackers and geeks: music.

From Washington Post ● Mar. 16, 2020

Apparently the Robertson boys are yuppies dressing up as rednecks for profit, and A&E is laughing with them all the way to the bank.

From Salon ● Dec. 30, 2013

Asked why the two made such a good pair, Mr. Shannon, a native of Lexington, Ky., mused for a while, before hazarding a guess: “We’re both kind of smart rednecks, which is a rarefied breed.”

From New York Times ● Apr. 19, 2013

Related Words

• hick
• hillbilly