rust
/ɹʌst/noun, verb
rust is spelled R-U-S-T: 4 letters and one syllable. It appears 5.5 times per million words in written English, the 10,519th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, rust means “The deteriorated state of iron or steel as a result of moisture and oxidation; it consists mostly of iron(III) oxide (ferric oxide) and iron(II)…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of rust is rusts.
How many letters and syllables are in rust?
| Letters | 4: R-U-S-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 5.5 times per million words; the 10,519th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is rust?
Rust appears 5.5 times per million words in written English, the 10,519th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce rust?
- US /ɹʌst/
- /ɹʊst/
- /ɾʌst/
Rust has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-rust.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with rust?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as rust from its last stressed vowel (/ʌst/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: stur.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of rust
- rusts plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- rusting participle, present
- rusted participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does rust mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The deteriorated state of iron or steel as a result of moisture and oxidation; it consists mostly of iron(III) oxide (ferric oxide) and iron(II) oxide (ferrous oxide).
The rust on my bicycle chain made cycling to work very dangerous.
- 2
A similar substance based on another metal.
copper rust
- 3
A reddish-brown color.
- 4
A disease of plants caused by a reddish-brown fungus (Pucciniales).
- 5
Damage caused to stamps and album pages by a fungal infection.
verb
- 1
To oxidize, especially of iron or steel.
The patio furniture had rusted in the wind-driven spray.
- 2
To cause to oxidize.
The wind-driven spray had thoroughly rusted the patio furniture.
- 3
To be affected with the parasitic fungus called rust.
- 4
To (cause to) degenerate in idleness; to make or become dull or impaired by inaction.
My knowledge of Spanish has rusted over the years.
- 5
Of a black cat or its fur, to turn rust-coloured following long periods of exposure to sunlight.
It's very common for black cats to rust during the summer.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Rust in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | rouille , rouiller, oxyder , enrouiller |
| German | Rost , verrosten, rosten , Rostbraun , Weizenbraunrost, Schwarzrost |
| Portuguese | ferrugem , enferrujar, oxidar |
| Spanish | óxido, herrumbre, moho, orín , rojizo , roya |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does rust come from?
From Middle English rust, rost, roust, from Old English rust, rūst (“rust”), from Proto-West Germanic *rust, from Proto-Germanic *rustaz (“rust”), from Proto-Indo-European *rudʰso- (“red”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₁rewdʰ- (“red”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).