Reddish means having some red in it, but not being completely or purely red. A reddish apple might be mostly yellow with streaks of red. A reddish sunset shows oranges and pinks mixed with red. Your cheeks might look reddish after running outside on a cold day, slightly flushed but not bright red.

The word captures that in-between quality when something leans toward red without fully committing to it. A reddish-brown leaf in autumn, a reddish glow from a campfire, or the reddish tint of clay soil all show traces of red blended with other colors.

You can use reddish with other color words to be more specific: reddish-orange describes a sunset, reddish-purple might describe a bruise, and reddish-brown could describe rust or certain types of wood. The suffix -ish works this way with other colors too: bluish, greenish, yellowish. It's a useful way to describe something when the color isn't quite definite or pure, giving you the flexibility to communicate exactly what you're seeing.