redshirt

== English == === Etymology === Calque of Italian camicia rossa, equivalent to red +‎ shirt. In later senses with reference to the uniforms or outfits worn by such people. The fandom slang sense emerged from the tendency of red-uniformed Starfleet officers to die in episodes of Star Trek: The Original Series. === Pronunciation === (UK) IPA(key): /ˈɹɛd.ʃəː(ɹ)t/ === Noun === redshirt (plural redshirts) (now historical) A supporter of the Italian nationalist leader Giuseppe Garibaldi, especially a member of his thousand-man army which conquered Sicily. [from 19th c.] (now chiefly historical) A revolutionary or anarchist. [from 19th c.] (US, sports) A college athlete who spends a year not participating in official athletic activities, but does not lose his or her eligibility to participate in following years. [from 20th c.] (fiction, science fiction, fandom slang) An unimportant character introduced only to be killed in order to underscore the peril to the important characters; an expendable character. (US, military) A person responsible for loading and unloading weapons, artillery, and equipment from aircraft. Alternative form of Red Shirt (“member of the UDD”). ==== Derived terms ==== medical redshirt === Verb === redshirt (third-person singular simple present redshirts, present participle redshirting, simple past and past participle redshirted) (US, collegiate sports) To place an athlete in a status wherein the athlete will spend a year not participating in official athletic activities, but will not lose his or her eligibility to participate in following years. (US, collegiate sports) To take on a status wherein one will spend a year not participating in official athletic activities. (US) To hold a child out of kindergarten for one year in the hope that the child will do better academically and socially. 1985, March 1, "Some Educators Oppose Redshirting 5-Year-Olds," The Omaha World-Herald Parents who redshirt their 5-year-olds instead of enrolling them in kindergarten are a concern to some Nebraska educators who are trying to reverse the trend of holding children back until age 6 to start school. ==== See also ==== redskirt stock character on Wikipedia.Wikipedia === Anagrams === thirders