redundancy

Everyday

1. (work, UK, Ireland, Australia) Redundancy is losing your job because the employer no longer needs that job — for example when a factory closes — not because of anything you did wrong. tree →
2. (money) Redundancy pay is money given to a worker who is made redundant. tree →
3. (formal) Redundancy is having more of something than is needed, like spare parts kept "just in case" or repeated words. tree →

In the lessons

In adult life a parent may be "made redundant"; families then cut spending and the parent writes a new CV. Children may hear euphemisms like "let go" or "laid off" (US). In engineering, redundancy is good: a spare engine or backup computer keeps things safe. In writing lessons, redundancy means saying the same thing twice ("a free gift"). Phrases: be made redundant, redundancy pay, voluntary redundancy, face redundancy.

Examples

• Dad was made redundant when the factory closed. tree →
• Mum got redundancy pay to help until she finds work. tree →
• Hundreds of workers faced redundancy. tree →
• It wasn't his fault — it was redundancy, not the sack. tree →
• Planes have redundancy: if one system fails, another takes over. tree →
• "Return back" has redundancy, because return already means go back. tree →

Note

Plural redundancies (y → ies). Adjective redundant. US/Canada say "laid off" or "layoffs". Redundancy is different from being sacked or fired (losing a job for doing something wrong).

In Jewish tradition

In adult life a parent may be "made redundant"; families then cut spending and the parent writes a new CV. Children may hear euphemisms like "let go" or "laid off" (US). In engineering, redundancy is good: a spare engine or backup computer keeps things safe. In writing lessons, redundancy means saying the same thing twice ("a free gift"). Phrases: be made redundant, redundancy pay, voluntary redundancy, face redundancy.

Note

Plural redundancies (y → ies). Adjective redundant. US/Canada say "laid off" or "layoffs". Redundancy is different from being sacked or fired (losing a job for doing something wrong).