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

Kreider’s husband, Jim, chimed in: “A redneck, gun-toting environmentalist.”

From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2025

Something about his mud-encrusted boots and the way he let smoke curl from his lips and how the sinking sun lit his green hair reminded me of a punk, redneck James Dean.

From "Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children" by Ransom Riggs

“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

These arresting stories, all set in a working-class town in eastern British Columbia, where D. W. Wilson grew up, concern “the nuances of rural life, the divide between rednecks and bluecollars.”

From New York Times ● Jan. 29, 2014

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

Related Words

• hick
• hillbilly