rustier; rustiest
1
: affected by or as if by rust
especially
: stiff with or as if with rust
2
: inept and slow through lack of practice or old age
3
a
: of the color rust
b
: dulled in color or appearance by age and use
rusty old boots
4
: outmoded
Synonyms
Examples of rusty in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Nov. 2023
Many playgrounds of the past were dangerous, with ladders climbing upward of 20 feet to rusty slides with no rails.
—Athena Aktipis, Scientific American, 1 Nov. 2023
In 2018, more than 3,000 patients were at risk of exposure to hepatitis B, hepatitis C and HIV after rusty equipment was used in a New Jersey surgery center.
—Katie Mogg, NBC News, 16 Nov. 2023
The latter leads Alice to impale her hand on a rusty nail from a fence.
—Eric Andersson, Peoplemag, 16 Nov. 2023
For watering in style: HB Design Company Indoor Watering Can
SEE IT
This isn’t your grandma’s rusty watering can (though that’s pretty cool, too).
—Helen Bradshaw, Popular Science, 9 Nov. 2023
Flipping through the volumes page by page (without gloves, which cause more damage than bare fingers, Dr. Rasmussen says), the folio detectives ran across food and wine stains, rusty silhouettes of scissors used as bookmarks, and margins scribbled with personal notes and math problems.
—Roy Rivenburg, The Christian Science Monitor, 8 Nov. 2023
In Punta Arenas, Chile, a dozen rusty Chinese squid ships were anchored a mile from port.
—Los Angeles Times, 7 Nov. 2023
At day’s end, a rusty stripe spread across the western horizon, low in elevation, pale in color.
—Martin Weil, Washington Post, 4 Nov. 2023
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Adjective
His voice was rusty at first, but gradually gained strength.
—George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Nov. 2023
Many playgrounds of the past were dangerous, with ladders climbing upward of 20 feet to rusty slides with no rails.
—Athena Aktipis, Scientific American, 1 Nov. 2023
In 2018, more than 3,000 patients were at risk of exposure to hepatitis B, hepatitis C and HIV after rusty equipment was used in a New Jersey surgery center.
—Katie Mogg, NBC News, 16 Nov. 2023
The latter leads Alice to impale her hand on a rusty nail from a fence.
—Eric Andersson, Peoplemag, 16 Nov. 2023
For watering in style: HB Design Company Indoor Watering Can
SEE IT
This isn’t your grandma’s rusty watering can (though that’s pretty cool, too).
—Helen Bradshaw, Popular Science, 9 Nov. 2023
Flipping through the volumes page by page (without gloves, which cause more damage than bare fingers, Dr. Rasmussen says), the folio detectives ran across food and wine stains, rusty silhouettes of scissors used as bookmarks, and margins scribbled with personal notes and math problems.
—Roy Rivenburg, The Christian Science Monitor, 8 Nov. 2023
In Punta Arenas, Chile, a dozen rusty Chinese squid ships were anchored a mile from port.
—Los Angeles Times, 7 Nov. 2023
At day’s end, a rusty stripe spread across the western horizon, low in elevation, pale in color.
—Martin Weil, Washington Post, 4 Nov. 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'rusty.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Dictionary Entries Near rusty
Cite this Entry
“Rusty.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rusty. Accessed 10 Dec. 2023.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
rusty
adjectiveˈrəs-tē
rustier; rustiest
1
: affected by or as if by rust
2
: less skilled and slow through lack of practice or old age
3
: of the color rust
rustily
adverb
-tə-lē
rustiness
noun
-tē-nəs
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