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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If Britain continues down the path of criminalizing thought and prayer, the alliance risks being reduced to polite diplomacy while its moral core rots away.—
Lois McLatchie Miller,
MSNBC Newsweek,
20 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Return nutrients back to the soil Fallen leaves and other plant debris act as a natural mulch, which slowly decomposes over the winter.—
Chris McKeown,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
18 Oct. 2025
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When leaves fall to the ground, the carbon stays in these leaves, breaks down, and decomposes and releases nutrients back into the soil that plants can take in.—
Saleen Martin,
USA Today,
14 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The most common isotope, plutonium-239, is produced when the most common isotope of uranium, uranium-238, absorbs a neutron and then quickly decays to plutonium.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
23 Oct. 2025
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The heartwood in the tree’s center decays first and makes for easy excavating.—
Madison Dapcevich,
Outside,
21 Sep. 2025
Verb
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But political violence committed by private individuals or groups also corrodes constitutional democracy.—
Gregory P. Magarian,
The Conversation,
10 Oct. 2025
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Risk perceptions keep capital in safe markets, compliance-heavy rules choke local access, and misinformation corrodes trust in the very tools meant to help.—
Felicia Jackson,
Forbes.com,
29 Aug. 2025
Verb
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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
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Peroxide oxidizes and breaks down the chemical bonds that color stains.—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
17 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Rusts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rusts. Accessed 9 Nov. 2025.
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