redcoat

[ red-koht ]

noun

1. (especially during the American Revolution) a British soldier.

redcoat

/ ˈrɛdˌkəʊt /

noun

1. (formerly) a British soldier

Word History and Origins

Origin of redcoat¹

First recorded in 1510–20; red ¹ + coat

Word History and Origins

Origin of redcoat¹

C16: from the colour of the uniform jacket

Example Sentences

Humiliated, sick, hungry—some of them drunk—the once-proud British redcoats kept their eyes down.

From Literature

It’s 1833 in Friel’s fictional small town, Ballybeg, where a sweet, putrid smell rising from the potato fields forebodes famine and an ingress of redcoats threatens to blight the local heritage.

From New York Times

Just weeks earlier, redcoats had burned the U.S.

From Seattle Times

In the background, U.S. soldiers in blue fight off invading British redcoats.

From Los Angeles Times

It began with callbacks to the darkest days of American history — to redcoats sacking a young nation’s capital and a legacy of racist violence it has long struggled to overcome.

From Washington Post