Definition

1. Verb:
   • To refuse a loan, insurance, or other service, or to charge more for it, based on the geographic location of the property or applicant, especially in a racially discriminatory manner. This is the specific, historical meaning related to housing discrimination.
   • To operate an engine or machine at its maximum safe limit. This is a separate, more general meaning, often seen in mechanical contexts.

Usage Examples

• Verb (Housing Discrimination):
  • Banks were found to redline entire neighborhoods, denying mortgages to qualified residents.
  • The practice of redlining was outlawed by the Fair Housing Act of 1968.
• Verb (Mechanical Limit):
  • Be careful not to redline the engine, or you could cause serious damage.
  • The tachometer shows when you are about to redline the motor.

Advanced Usage

• "Redlining" (Gerund/Noun): The systematic practice of discrimination described in the primary definition.
  • The legacy of redlining continues to affect urban development and wealth inequality today.
• Figurative Use: Sometimes used metaphorically to describe setting a strict limit or boundary.
  • The manager redlined the budget, refusing to approve any further expenses.

Variants and Related Words

• Redlined (Adjective/Verb Past Tense): Describes an area that was subjected to redlining, or an engine that was operated at its limit.
  • The redlined district suffered from decades of disinvestment.
  • He redlined the car during the race.
• Redline (Noun): The maximum safe operating limit, often marked by a red line on a gauge.
  • Keep the needle below the redline.

Synonyms

• Discriminate (in the housing context): To make an unjust distinction in treatment.
• Rev or Over-rev (in the mechanical context): To increase engine speed, especially to a very high level.

Related Phrases

• To be in the redline: To be operating at the maximum limit.
  • The engine was in the redline for several seconds.

Notes on Meaning

The two primary meanings of "redline" are distinct. The first is a socio-economic term with significant historical and legal weight, referring to a discriminatory practice where lenders would literally draw red lines on maps around neighborhoods deemed "hazardous" for investment, often predominantly minority areas. The second is a technical term from engineering and mechanics. The context of the sentence will always clarify which meaning is intended.

Verb

1. discriminate in selling or renting housing in certain areas of a neighborhood