Thesaurus.com
Dictionary.com
Definitions

red ink

NOUN
debt
Synonyms
STRONGEST
arrears bill capital commitment credit damage deficit due indebtedness liability mortgage obligation price tag receipt
STRONG
IOU albatross baggage bite check chit claim cuff debenture debit dues duty encumbrance invoice manifest note reckoning responsibility score tab tally voucher
WEAK
arrearage bad news below the line dead horse in hock in the hole in the red outstandings promissory note
Antonyms
STRONG
irresponsibility
WEAK
asset cash excess profit
NOUN
deficit
Synonyms
STRONGEST
loss shortfall
STRONG
arrears defalcation default deficiency dues inadequacy insufficiency lack paucity scantiness shortcoming
WEAK
dead horse due bill in hock in the hole in the red insufficience underage
Antonyms
STRONG
abundance adequacy advantage enough perfection plenty satisfaction success sufficiency
WEAK
excess superfluousness
NOUN
shortfall
Synonyms
STRONGEST
deficiency flaw lack loss shortage shortcoming
STRONG
arrears default defectiveness inadequacy incompleteness insufficiency
WEAK
in the hole in the red insufficience underage
Antonyms
STRONGEST
abundance enough perfection plenty success sufficiency

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.

The red ink is mounting for companies in the business of slaughtering cattle.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 25, 2026

They produced a lot of red ink in the company’s portfolio last year, as Occidental’s stock slumped.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 16, 2026

Reality Labs, the division created to power that alternative universe, lost $4.4 billion last quarter, taking its cumulative red ink past $70 billion in less than five years.

From Barron's • Oct. 30, 2025

The label, handwritten in red ink, read "Soundtrack For The Twenty One Bus Home".

From BBC • Oct. 29, 2025

But Mr. Daniels doesn’t cover my papers with red ink like other teachers.

From "Fish in a Tree" by Lynda Mullaly Hunt

From Roget's 21st Century Thesaurus, Third Edition Copyright © 2013 by the Philip Lief Group.