"Red Misting" or "Red Mist": Which Is Correct?

"Red misting" is an incorrect form of the noun phrase "red mist," which is a state of extreme anger, rage, or aggression.

When someone is experiencing the "red mist," it means they are so overwhelmed by these negative emotions that it may be difficult to think clearly which results in acting impulsively, behaving irrationally, or losing control of their behavior.

The term "red mist" likely derives from the idea that when a person is extremely angry, their face may flush, and their vision may become clouded or distorted as if they are looking through a "red mist." It is often used to emphasize the intensity of someone's anger or frustration.

After the heated argument with his coworker, he saw nothing but red mist and had to take a break to cool down.

In the example sentence above, the subject of the sentence was so angry that he had to take a break to calm down his emotions.

It is important to note that "red mist" is an informal and figurative term and is typically used in casual conversations to describe extreme anger or frustration. It would be best not to use the term in formal contexts, like business emails or academic writing.

The use of "red mist" throughout time

The incorrect present participle "red misting" was not found in Google's Ngram corpus of data. "Red mist," however, has seen a spike in use in the 2000s, showing that the noun phrase version of the colloquial term is much more commonly used than the incorrect present participle.

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the earliest known use of the noun "red mist" is from 1844 in Lloyd's Penny Weekly Misc, which is a British journal published in the 1840s.

Where did "red misting" come from?

How did the misspelling or mistaken "red misting" come about? A person who knew of the noun phrase "red mist" most likely thought the phrase could be used as a verb and used it as the mistaken present participle "red misting," as in "He is red misting right now." This sentence can be adjusted to "He is feeling the red mist of anger right now."

They may have also thought "red mist" was a verb and that the noun form was the gerund "red misting" was the noun form of the term, as in "She was experiencing red misting and needed time to calm down." This sentence can be adjusted to use the correct colloquial phrase "red mist" by reading "She was experiencing the red mist and needed time to calm down."

Example sentences

When he heard the unfair criticism, he saw nothing but red mist and had to step away to calm down.
After hours of frustrating traffic, I felt the red mist building as my patience wore thin.
She tried to control her temper, but the red mist descended when she realized her phone was missing.
The referee's controversial decision on the field made the entire crowd see red mist.
It's important to stay calm and not let the red mist affect your judgment during a heated argument.
In the face of the unexpected news, he couldn't help but feel the red mist of disappointment.
The repeated delays on the project had the team members seeing red mist with frustration.
The unfair treatment at work was enough to make anyone see red mist.
Despite his efforts to stay composed, the criticism from the boss caused the red mist to descend.
Their stubbornness and refusal to compromise made her see nothing but red mist during the negotiation.

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