Slang

redneck

This page is about the slang term redneck

American English offensive!

Meaning

a lower-class white person from a rural background

For example

  • We were driving through Alabama when we saw some rednecks riding in the back of a pick-up truck drinking whiskey from a bottle.

  • If it wasn't for the redneck vote, the Republicans wouldn't have won the election.

Origin: Originally referred to working-class white people from the southeastern states of the USA. These people often worked outside as farmers or labourers, and they'd often have red necks as a result of sunburn.

Variety

This is typically used in American English but may be used in other varieties of English too.

Quick Quiz

A redneck is someone who is probably from

a. a poor, rural family

b. a small, sunburned family

c. a rich, big-city family
a) a poor, rural family b) a small, sunburned family c) a rich, big-city family

See Slang of the Day today

Contributor: Matt Errey