English dictionary

red herring

/r/E/d_'h/E/r/I//N/

Definitions, examples, synonyms and antonyms from WordNet 3.0.

noun

any diversion intended to distract attention from the main issue

noun.act

Source: WordNet 3.0
a dried and smoked herring having a reddish color

noun.food

Synonyms smoked herring

Source: WordNet 3.0
a first draft of a prospectus; must be clearly marked to indicate that parts may be changed in the final prospectus

noun.communication

Examples
Because some portions of the cover page are printed in red ink a preliminary prospectus is sometimes called a red herring.

Synonyms preliminary prospectus

Source: WordNet 3.0