variants also incrust
as in to smear
to cover with a hardened layer refrigerator shelves that were encrusted with the residue of many spills

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of encrust Edward Herman from the Cook Islands' Seabed Minerals Authority holding polymetallic nodules, misshapen black globes encrusted with cobalt, nickel, manganese and other coveted metals, on June 12, 2025. Hugh Cameron john Feng, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Aug. 2025 High ceilings stretched above me, encrusted with mouldings of flowers and faces, while garlands, angels, and Ionic columns flocked the dirty, peeling walls. Hazlitt, 12 Mar. 2025 His Lifestyle Flyback Chronograph RM 72-01 is encrusted with diamonds set in white gold and features a green rubber strap. Hannah Malach, WWD, 6 Jan. 2025 It was then replaced with a $150K Jordan replica sneaker sculpture, encrusted with 143,000 Swarovski crystals, each hand-set over three months. Cassell Ferere, Forbes, 23 Dec. 2024 See All Example Sentences for encrust
Recent Examples of Synonyms for encrust
Verb
  • Rubbing will smear the mud and cause a bigger problem.
    Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 6 Sep. 2025
  • Jason’s windshield was smeared, and the late-afternoon sunlight came through hazily.
    Akhil Sharma, New Yorker, 28 Aug. 2025
Verb
  • Mud caked the walls and floors on the home’s bottom level.
    Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 3 Sep. 2025
  • But the experience with crypto mining, where GPUs are run inside dusty data centers that leave GPUs caked in dirt, were a catalyst for what became CoreWeave’s secret sauce.
    Reed Albergotti, semafor.com, 27 Aug. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Encrust.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/encrust. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.

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