as in to rot
to form rust
The old car was left to rust in the yard of the abandoned house.
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
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 rust
Old mine buildings and rusting machinery slowly decay, some of them now submerged in floodwaters.
—
Tommy Trenchard, NPR, 23 Aug. 2025
The structure is made of metal that’s resistant to rust, water, and sun.
—Isabel Garcia, People.com, 21 Aug. 2025
The beams in the Palm House at Kew Gardens are rusting.
—Elizabeth Kolbert, New Yorker, 9 Aug. 2025
Additional reports documented rusting meat racks, doors that failed to close completely and staff who ignored required handwashing stations.
—Jonel Aleccia, Chicago Tribune, 8 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for rust
Tommy Trenchard, NPR, 23 Aug. 2025
The structure is made of metal that’s resistant to rust, water, and sun.
—Isabel Garcia, People.com, 21 Aug. 2025
The beams in the Palm House at Kew Gardens are rusting.
—Elizabeth Kolbert, New Yorker, 9 Aug. 2025
Additional reports documented rusting meat racks, doors that failed to close completely and staff who ignored required handwashing stations.
—Jonel Aleccia, Chicago Tribune, 8 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for rust
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rust
Verb
-
People are assigning themselves homework to combat brain rot and improve their attention spans.—
Daniel Wine,
CNN Money,
15 Sep. 2025
-
Warm conditions produce more food for these microbes, which thrive in rotting vegetation, as is found in tropical wetlands and thawing Arctic permafrost.—
Katherine Bourzac,
Quanta Magazine,
15 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Colorful spots on Cheyava Falls contain the mineral greigite, which some microbes on Earth excrete, and vivianite, which is often found around decaying organic matter.—
David W. Brown,
New Yorker,
13 Sep. 2025
-
The rest resides for a time in lumber, which in the case of redwood is mostly used for picnic tables, fences and decks that all too soon decay and release the remaining carbon.—
John P. O’Brien,
Mercury News,
13 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
O’Steen bludgeoned Marissa Grimes, dug a shallow grave for her under his house in west Fort Worth and for 10 days lived above where police later sawed open the floor to expose Grimes’ decomposing 135-pound body, prosecutors have argued that the evidence shows.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
12 Sep. 2025
-
Two people discovered badly decomposed human remains while doing a walkthrough of a home for sale in Ohio, police told news outlets.—
Mitchell Willetts,
Kansas City Star,
11 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The ones that corrode trust, grind productivity to a halt and send talented people looking for the exit.—
Stephan Lendi,
Forbes.com,
8 Sep. 2025
-
The dissipator grate, which was installed in 1998 and has corroded over the years due to the ocean conditions, is also being replaced, the city announced.—
Luke Harold,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
5 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Rust.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rust. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share