as in rots
to form rust
The old car was left to rust in the yard of the abandoned house.
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Recent Examples of rusts
The red planet owes its distinctive hue to an oxidizing process that rusts iron present in the rocks and dust of Mars.
—
Anthony Wood, Space.com, 24 Sep. 2025
Anthony Wood, Space.com, 24 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rusts
Verb
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Bacterial plant diseases include speck (a winter-surviving infection that attacks tomatoes), canker (which damages fruit trees including those producing apples and peaches), and blight (which rots melons, cucumbers, pumpkins, squash, peppers, tomatoes, eggplants, beans, and more).—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
10 Jan. 2026
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Critics have long warned that too much television rots your brain, but new evidence suggests at least some time in front of the tube may actually benefit your mental health.—
Andrew Paul,
Popular Science,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The research team developed a route-planning system for Astrobee, the ISS’s robotic assistant, that leverages sequential convex programming—a method that decomposes complex trajectory planning into smaller, tractable steps while guaranteeing safety and feasibility.—
Jijo Malayil,
Interesting Engineering,
12 Dec. 2025
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Shilajit is a mineral-rich resin that forms over centuries as plant material slowly decomposes under heat and pressure within the rocks of the Himalayan Mountains.—
Lindsay Curtis,
Verywell Health,
27 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Grief gets layered on top of grief and secrets stack sky high as suburban normalcy decays into something at once alarmingly unstable and comfortingly funny.—
Alison Foreman,
IndieWire,
19 Dec. 2025
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This famously happens when a quantum object is measured, but in this case, the mystery crops up when the top quark decays into lighter particles.—
Shalma Wegsman,
Quanta Magazine,
25 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Saltwater corrodes the moving parts, and marine life like barnacles can jam blades.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
15 Jan. 2026
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That applies equally to nuclear brinkmanship in the Middle East and narco-state behavior in the Western Hemisphere that corrodes security at home and abroad.—
Jason D. Greenblatt,
semafor.com,
9 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The main ingredient is sodium perborate or sodium percarbonate which when introduced to water, oxidizes to help remove soil and stains and to cut through residual build-up that leaves fabric dull.—
Mary Marlowe Leverette,
Southern Living,
13 Jan. 2026
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Oxidative Stability Matters More Than Smoke Point Instead of focusing on smoke point, experts say oxidative stability, or how easily an oil oxidizes and breaks down, is a better measure of quality and safety.—
Mira Miller,
Verywell Health,
27 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Rusts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rusts. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.
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