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

A wily, rambling record that demonstrated a clear debt to such longhair redneck troubadours as Jerry Jeff Walker, “Down to Earth” didn’t find an audience.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2023

Mr. Foreman, who called himself “a redneck for the environment,” had never shown much interest in left-wing politics, and in 1990 he and his wife, Nancy Morton, publicly split with Earth First!

From New York Times ● Sep. 28, 2022

He was a huge guy with stark white hair, a straw cowboy hat, and a braided white beard—kind of like Father Time, if Father Time went redneck and got totally jacked.

From "The Battle of the Labyrinth" by Rick Riordan

“People think we’re ass-backward rednecks, but that’s not true,” said Martin, who ordered a salad and kissed her husband before his round of golf.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2024

“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

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

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

It’s not like me or Jody are misogynists, or racists, or even rednecks.

From Salon ● May 18, 2012

Related Words

• hick
• hillbilly