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red herring

   Also found in: Dictionary/thesaurus, Medical, Financial, Acronyms, Wikipedia 0.04 sec.
red herring
a piece of information or suggestion introduced to draw attention away from the real facts of a situation. (A red herring is a type of strong-smelling smoked fish that was once drawn across the trail of a scent to mislead hunting dogs and put them off the scent.) The detectives were following a red herring, but they're on the right track now. The mystery novel has a couple of red herrings that keep readers off guard.
See also: herring, red


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? References in classic literature
Huxtable, it would be well to allow the people in your neighbourhood to imagine that the inquiry is still going on in Liverpool, or wherever else that red herring led your pack.
"Mamma," said Rosamond, "when Fred comes down I wish you would not let him have red herrings.
He asked this member of the fraternity (who had two red herrings in his hand, and a loaf and a blacking brush under his arm), where was the nearest place to get a cup of coffee at.
 
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