Word.ws English Dictionary

red-eye

UK/ˈɹɛdaɪ//ˈɹɛdˌaɪ/

red-eye noun: the common rudd (Scardinius erythrophthalmus), a freshwater fish. Also the ellipsis of red-eye gravy.

Noun

red-eye (countable and uncountable, plural red-eyes)

  1. The common rudd (Scardinius erythrophthalmus), a freshwater fish.
    • The fish of Lough Neath, in Ireland, called a Roach, is in reality the Rudd, or Red-eye, Cyprinus erythrophthalamus of authors, to be hereafter described—a fish belonging to the second division of the genus Leuciscus of Klein, which has the dorsal fin over the space between the ventral and anal...1836, William Yarrell, “The Roach”, in A History of British Fishes. … In Two Volumes, volume I, London: John Van Voorst, […], →OCLC, page 349
    • [page 77] L. erythrophthalmus. The Red-Eye or Rudd. [...] The name Red-Eye has been assigned to it from the colour of the iris; [...] [page 78] The body of the Red-Eye is deep, and the lower-jaw is the longest.[1876?], R[obert] Hamilton, “XIII. Family of Carps. Cyprinidæ.”, in A History of British Fishes, volume II, London: Hardwicke and Bogue, […], →OCLC, pages 77 and 78
  2. Any of various grass-skippers or hesperiid butterflies of the genus Matapa.
    • The Common Redeye (Matapa aria Moore) is much smaller (wingspan: 40–55 mm), plain brown without any markings, but as in the Giant Redeye its eyes are red.2000, Krushnamegh Kunte, “Family Hesperiidae: Skippers [Giant Redeye]”, in Madhav Gadgil, editor, India—a Lifescape: Butterflies of Peninsular India, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh: Universities Press...
  3. The red-eyed treefrog (Agalychnis callidryas), which is native to neotropical rainforests.
    • Red-eyes have large and well-developed toepads and are adept at both leaping and walking through their elevated homes.2006, R[ichard] D. Bartlett, The 25 Best Reptile and Amphibian Pets, Hauppauge, N.Y.: Barron’s Educational Series, →ISBN, page 125
  4. (Australia) A species of cicada, Psaltoda moerens, native to eastern Australia.
    • The red eye, Psaltoda moerens, is sometimes common around Sydney where its favoured host, Angophora costata, grows. In some years populations can be immense with many thousands inhabiting just a few trees.2010 September, M. S. Moulds, “Three Noisy Sydney Insects – the Cicadas”, in Daniel Lunney, Pat Hutchings, Dieter Hochuli, editors, The Natural History of Sydney, Sydney, N.S.W.: Royal Zoological...
  5. (Canada, US) The red-eyed vireo (Vireo olivaceus), a small American songbird.
    • The red-eye (Vireo olivaceus), [...] The first (the red-eye) is one of the most abundant birds in the woods of the northern states. In the spring months, he is one of the most conspicuous of our singers, and, though his notes are short, they are very musical and lively.1851, J[ohann] G[eorg] Heck, “Sub-order 3. Dentirostres, Tooth-billed Birds.”, in Spencer F[ullerton] Baird, transl., Iconographic Encyclopædia of Science, Literature, and Art. … Translated from the...
    • The Red-eye sings with clear to slurred whistles using a variety of phrasings. It scolds with a harsh "dzur." [...] Red-eyes are common in city and town parks.1998 June, W[illiam] Bruce McGillivray, Glen P[eter] Semenchuk, “Shrikes and Vireos”, in The Federation of Alberta Naturalists Field Guide to Alberta Birds, Edmonton, Alta.: Federation of Alberta...
  6. (South Africa, US) Any of various round herrings of the genus Etrumeus.
    • The egg of the round herring or red-eye Etrumeus whiteheadi (E. micropus, E. teres) is smooth, spherical (diameter around 1·4 mm) with a narrow perivitelline space and has a large lightly segmented yolk and no oil globule [...].1986, L. V. Shannon, S. C. Pillar, “The Benguela Ecosystem. Part III. Plankton.”, in Harold Barnes, Margaret Barnes, editors, Oceanography and Marine Biology: An Annual Review, volume 24, Aberdeen...
    • This is probably less of a barrier to mesopelagic species such as lanternfish (Lampanyctodes hectoris), redeye (Etrumeus whiteheadi) or gobies (Sufflogobius bibarbatus), all of which are capable of more extensive vertical migration than the small epipelagic fish.2006, Carl van der Lingen et al., “Forecasting Shelf Processes of Relevance to Living Marine Resources in the BCLME”, in Vere Shannon et al., editors, Benguela: Predicting a Large Marine Ecosystem...
  7. (US) Either of two subspecies of the copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix), a venomous pit viper native to the United States: either the broad-banded copperhead or Texas copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix laticinctus), or the highland moccasin or northern copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix mokasen).
    • Agkistrodon contortrix Linnaeus.—Cotton-mouth, Highland Moccasin, Rattlesnake Pilot, Red-eye.[1905, F. N. Notestein, “The Ophidia of Michigan with an Analytical Key”, in Seventh Report of the Michigan Academy of Science: […], Lansing, Mich.: Wynkoop Hallenbeck Crawford Co., state printers...
  8. (US) Any of various sunfishes of the family Centrarchidae, especially the redeye bass (Micropterus coosae) or the rock bass (Ambloplites rupestris).
    • Redeyes inhabit clear-water streams with an abundance of shoals and are usually confined to headwater sections.1970 April, A. J. McClane, “The Sunfish Family”, in Clare Conley, editor, Field and Stream, volume LXXIV, number 12, New York, N.Y.: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 116, column 2
    • Bring back the days of cane poles and lazy summer mornings and creeks full of sassy rock bass. […] “All you gotta do,” advised Thornhill, fingering through a minnow bucket for a lively victim, “is find a hole with a redeye in it . . . like that little spot over near the bank.”1980 June 22, Sam Venable, “Minnow Magic: Tiny Streams Can Hold Hefty Rock Bass — If You Know Where To Search”, in The Knoxville News-Sentinel, number 30,083, Knoxville, Tenn., page D8
  9. The redeye tetra (Moenkhausia sanctaefilomenae), a freshwater fish, commonly kept in aquariums, native to South America.
    • My roommate has a 30 gallon long tank that is currently stocked with 6 neons and about 30 red-eyes. The neons are large (as neons go) and the red-eyes are almost an inch and a quarter.1996 May 25, Mark Lawrence Storch, “Cichilds with Tetras”, in rec.aquaria.freshwater.misc (Usenet)
  10. A drink made by adding a shot of espresso to a cup of coffee.
    • "A red-eye, please," I said to the young woman. I waited to see whether she would recognize the drink or whether I would have to explain that it was a cup of coffee with a shot of espresso. [...] She made my drink, then his, but kept her eyes on him even as she handed me my red-eye.2008, Betty Hechtman, Hooked on Murder, New York, N.Y.: Berkley Prime Crime, →ISBN, page 58
    • "Morning, Lily." She handed me a Red Eye—coffee with a shot of espresso—and blew on her own soy chai latte.2012 July, Juliet Blackwell, chapter 4, in In a Witch’s Wardrobe (A Witchcraft Mystery), New York, N.Y.: Obsidian, New American Library, →ISBN, pages 32–33
  11. (Canada, regional) A drink consisting of beer with tomato juice.
  12. (US, slang) A strong but poor-quality whiskey.
    • Near-synonym: rotgut
    • [W]hat I am trying to explain to you is that I have rather cracked grains and that a visit from you would not solve anything, especially with a jug of red eye when my stomach is gone.1967 April 29, Charles Bukowski, “[Letter to Darrell Kerr]”, in On Writing, Edinburgh: Canongate Books, published 2015, →ISBN
    Synonyms:
    rotgut
Show 3 more meaningsShow fewer meanings
  1. (US, also, attributive, colloquial, countable) An overnight airplane flight or train trip.
    • I waited too late to book my holiday flight, so I had to take the red-eye.
    • In fact, you don't see many business travelers on the redeye — the flights that leave West Coast cities after 10 p.m. and touch down at East Coast airports around 6 a.m. […] Redeyes tend to be full of leisure travelers, budget travelers, people involved in bicoastal romances and students.1990 January 14, Martha T. Moore, “Who flies the ‘redeyes’?”, in The Herald Statesman, volume 126, number 36, Yonkers, N.Y., page G7
  2. Redness of the conjunctiva; especially when caused by conjunctivitis (pinkeye).
    • Most eye disorders tend to present as ‘red eye’. It is the single most common ophthalmic complaint encountered by general practitioners.2014, Andrew T. Raferty, Eric Lim, Andrew J. K. Östör, “Eye Disorders”, in Churchill’s Pocketbook of Differential Diagnosis, 4th edition, Churchill Livingstone, Elsevier, →ISBN, page 126
  3. Redness in the eye(s) of someone in a colour photograph, as an unwanted consequence of light from a flash reflecting off blood vessels in the retina.
    • Use red-eye reduction when photographing people. It won't eliminate red-eye in every photo, but it's worth trying. When the D60 attempts to reduce red-eye it lights up the autofocus assist lamp on the front of the camera for about one second before taking the picture.2009, Corey Hilz, “Making Pictures”, in Nikon D60 (Focal Digital Camera Guides), Burlington, Mass.; Oxford, Oxfordshire: Focal Press, →ISBN, part 1 (The Camera), page 65
    • If you spot a red-eye problem, however, give the Red-Eye Correction filter a try: [...] If the camera detects red-eye, it applies the removal filter and displays the results in the monitor. If the camera can't find any red-eye, it displays a message telling you so.2009, Julie Adair King, with Doug Sahlin, “Ten (or so) Fun and Practical Retouch Menu Features”, in Nikon D5000 for Dummies (For Dummies), Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley Publishing, →ISBN, part IV (The Parts...

Verb

red-eye (third-person singular simple present red-eyes, present participle red-eyeing or (rare) red-eying, simple past and past participle red-eyed)

  1. (colloquial, intransitive) Often followed by it: to travel on a red-eye (“an overnight airplane flight”).
    • I flew in this morning, red-eying it in last night after hearing of this hearing, because what you are doing here is something that I am particularly interested in.1988 January 28, “Witnesses: Roy Sampson, Portland, Oregon”, in Enforcement of the Indian Civil Rights Act: Hearing Held in Washington, D.C., January 28, 1988: […], [Washington, D.C.?]: United States...
    • When I arrived at the Center, Block's staff told me he had red-eyed it home from Alaska the night before; he had been surfing fifteen- to twenty-foot waves off the coast of Alaska.2004, Brenda Hunter, “What is Cancer Saying about Our Lives?”, in Staying Alive: Life-changing Strategies for Surviving Cancer: […], Colorado Springs, Colo.: WaterBrook Press, Random House, →ISBN...

Also used as

red-eye is also the ellipsis of red-eye gravy.

Examples of red-eye in a sentence

  • She set the bottle of red-eye on the bar, along with a tumbler. [...] I sipped, wheezed, let that first firewater slide down and start some trouble in my gut, and then sipped again.2010, William W[allace] Johnstone, J. A. Johnstone, chapter 16, in Savage Guns (Pinnacle Western; Cotton Pickens; 3), New York, N.Y....
  • The red-eye back to San Francisco was only about half full.2007, Ellen Klages, “Triangle”, in Portable Childhoods, San Francisco, Calif.: Tachyon Publications, →ISBN, pages 61–62:
  • He delighted in flying first class to New York on a red-eye and then putting in a full day's work.2014, John Glatt, “Up and Running: April to June, 1968”, in Live at the Fillmore East and West: Getting Backstage and Personal with Rock’s...
  • And though convinced she was making a fool of herself, she'd done as the frantic monk had begged, red-eyeing to Miami, island-hopping here.2011, Glenn Kleier, chapter 7, in The Knowledge of Good & Evil, New York, N.Y.: Tom Doherty Associates, →ISBN, page 37:

Synonyms of red-eye

Forms of red-eye

Noun
pluralred-eyes
alternative formred eye
alternative formredeye
Verb
third-person singular presentred-eyes
present participlered-eyeing
past participlered-eyed
pastred-eyed
present participle (rare)red-eying

Origin of red-eye

The noun is derived from red + eye; sense 2.3 (“strong but poor-quality whiskey”) and sense 3 (“overnight airplane flight”) are probably so named because they may cause people to develop bloodshot eyes. The verb is derived from the noun.

Words formed from red-eye

Phrases with red-eye

Questions about red-eye

What does red-eye mean?
Red-eye means the common rudd (Scardinius erythrophthalmus), a freshwater fish.
How do you use red-eye in a sentence?
She set the bottle of red-eye on the bar, along with a tumbler. [...] I sipped, wheezed, let that first firewater slide down and start some trouble in my gut, and then sipped again.
What part of speech is red-eye?
Red-eye can be a noun or a verb.
How do you pronounce red-eye?
Red-eye is pronounced /ˈɹɛdaɪ/ (UK).
What is the plural of red-eye?
The plural of red-eye is red-eyes.

Words near red-eye in the dictionary

  1. red-eared sliders
  2. red-eared terrapin
  3. red-eared terrapins
  4. red-eared turtle
  5. red-eared turtles
  6. red-eye
  7. red-eye flight
  8. red-eye flights
  9. red-eye gravies
  10. red-eye gravy
  11. red-eyed

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: red-eye (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: En-au-red-eye.ogg, En-us-red-eye.oga.

Cite this entry: “red-eye.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/red-eye. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.