Meaning

noun a red or brown oxide coating on iron or steel caused by the action of oxygen and moisture

noun a plant disease that produces a reddish-brown discoloration of leaves and stems; caused by various rust fungi

noun the formation of reddish-brown ferric oxides on iron by low-temperature oxidation in the presence of water

originFrom 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”). Cognate with Scots roust (“rust”), Saterland Frisian rust (“rust”), West Frisian roast (“rust”), Dutch roest (“rust”), German Rost (“rust”), Danish rust (“rust”),…

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0