redress
Americannoun
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the setting right of what is wrong.
redress of abuses.
- Synonyms:
- atonement, remedy, restoration
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relief from wrong or injury.
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compensation or satisfaction for a wrong or injury.
verb (used with object)
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redresses,
present (3rd person singular)
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redressed,
past participle, past
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redressing
present participle
verb
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to put right (a wrong), esp by compensation; make reparation for
to redress a grievance
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to correct or adjust (esp in the phrase redress the balance )
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to make compensation to (a person) for a wrong
noun
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the act or an instance of setting right a wrong; remedy or cure
to seek redress of grievances
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compensation, amends, or reparation for a wrong, injury, etc
-
relief from poverty or want
Synonym Usage
Redress, reparation, restitution suggest making amends or giving indemnification for a wrong. Redress may refer either to the act of setting right an unjust situation (as by some power), or to satisfaction sought or gained for a wrong suffered: the redress of grievances. Reparation means compensation or satisfaction for a wrong or loss inflicted. The word may have the moral idea of amends: to make reparation for one's neglect; but more frequently it refers to financial compensation (which is asked for, rather than given): the reparations demanded of the aggressor nations. Restitution means literally the restoration of what has been taken from the lawful owner: He demanded restitution of his land; it may also refer to restoring the equivalent of what has been taken: They made him restitution for his land.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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redresssimple
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redressessimple
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have redressedperfect
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has redressedperfect
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am redressingprogressive
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are redressingprogressive
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is redressingprogressive
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have been redressingperfect progressive
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has been redressingperfect progressive
Past
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redressedsimple
-
had redressedperfect
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was redressingprogressive
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were redressingprogressive
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had been redressingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of redress
First recorded in 1275–1325; (verb) Middle English redressen, from Middle French redresser, Old French redrecier, equivalent to re- re- + drecier “to straighten” ( see dress); (noun) Middle English, from Anglo-French redresse, redresce, derivative of the verb
Explanation
The verb redress is used when you are supposed to fix a problem and make amends. You want your parents to redress the fact that you don't have a pet. Your parents offer to get a hamster, but instead, you say you want a monkey. Redress can be used as both a noun and a verb. In the noun form, it is the compensation for setting something right. As a verb it means to correct, right a wrong, or make restitution for something. The union organizers wanted the company to redress the fact that workers weren't getting lunch breaks.
Vocabulary lists containing redress
The Declaration of Independence
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The Bill of Rights
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Julius Caesar
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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.
See Examples For:
A Swedish truth commission on Wednesday urged the state to apologise for injustices committed against its indigenous Sami people, including assimilation programmes, and provide compensation and redress.
From Barron's ● Sep. 30, 2026
He said he and his wife Anne were unsure if they would be pursuing further action against the Treasury, but that they wanted "redress".
From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026
The health minister said victims "have had to wait far too long for a response", adding that he had pressed the then minister responsible for patient safety for movement on financial redress.
From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026
Dozens more who worked at his luxury department store have filed for compensation under a redress scheme set up after a 2024 BBC documentary revealed the scale of his alleged offences.
From Barron's ● Aug. 2, 2026
“Let them know that it is their right to petition for a redress of their grievances.”
From "Black Boy" by Richard Wright
“Across the Ages,” the first truly comprehensive Celtic art survey in the U.S., redresses that long-standing prejudice.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 29, 2026
A bedrock principle of our legal system is that the federal judiciary adjudicates and redresses actual harms to real people.
From Slate ● Oct. 3, 2023
Seven years later, McDonell has come out with a very personal second memoir, “Irma,” that redresses these exact issues.
From New York Times ● Apr. 9, 2023
Still, Stehlin redresses many of the play's shortcomings in this production, which may lack a certain bite, but which still nibbles the funny bone -- and takes an occasional nip at the heartstrings as well.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 4, 2015
He bears grudges, broods over indignities, and plans redresses for the morrow or the week after.
From Our Southern Highlanders by Horace Kephart
“I felt that there was a balance that needed to be redressed in some ways, that people weren’t getting the full story,” she said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 20, 2026
The University and College Union has previously highlighted an ethnicity pay gap and called for it to be redressed.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
Even if every broken heart could be mended and every theft of opportunity redressed, ethno-racial communities would still rightly honor the endurance and resistance that sustained their members.
From Salon ● Aug. 23, 2024
Spencer redressed the existing sets to reflect the manly elements Gosling’s Ken has brought back from the Real World, including mini-fridges and leather furniture.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 12, 2024
Westley asked question after question while the albino tended and redressed his wound, then fed him food that was warm and surprisingly good and plentiful.
From "The Princess Bride" by William Goldman
That dragged total exports down by a total 7.3% on year, with other markets redressing some of the American drag.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 18, 2025
In 2023, it took a step towards redressing the past by formally recognizing the trade union movement – collectively, and for the first time – as a victim of Colombia's conflict.
From BBC ● May 18, 2025
“There is a trend towards redressing wrongs, telling untold stories, exposing truths, revealing hypocrisies,” she said.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 15, 2024
The referendum was framed as a first step toward redressing major historical wrongs.
From New York Times ● Feb. 4, 2024
She points to her wound, which is oozy, and clearly needs redressing.
From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman
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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.
