red zone meaning: definition, etymology and quotations

red zone

nounalso spelled red-zone

American football, Ball games, Football, Games, Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports The area extending twenty yards from the end zone, where a team in possession of the ball is expected to score.

California An area of a street where the curb has been painted red, indicating that stopping, standing or parking is prohibited at that spot (except, in some places, for buses).

Any other area so classified.

Lee Joyce, who leads on track and drainage for Project Brunel, explains: "The railway saw a lot of change in a short amount of time - COVID, the Elizabeth Line coming on. We lost Red Zone access [working on tracks with trains running].2025 May 28, Paul Clifton, “Project Brunel on the right line”, in RAIL, number 1036, page 29:

red-zone

verb

Etymology From the system of classifying areas of Christchurch, New Zealand as red zone (irreparable), green zone (reparable), or orange zone (more investigation needed) after the earthquakes of 2010 and 2011.

New Zealand To categorize as too damaged to repair, and requiring the owners to vacate (a property).

And in the event their land is red-zoned, at least they know they will ultimately get a new house under their AMI insurance policy.2013, Rebecca Macfie, Report from Christchurch, page 26:
As a result of severe and recurrent liquefaction damage, and the infeasibility of timely and effective land repair, more than 7000 residential properties in Christchurch were red-zoned (designated as currently uneconomic to repair) and purchased by central government at a cost exceeding NZ$1.6 billion.2016, James Goff, C. R. de Freitas, Natural Hazards in Australasia, page 133:

1 more example

His house in the Loop was red-zoned.2017, Gerald Murnane Fiona Farrell, Decline and Fall on Savage Street, →ISBN, page 336: