See Also: rusty(medicine)
rusty(1)(dictionary)
rusty(2)(dictionary)
rusty(3)(dictionary)
rusty(dictionary)
rusty sputum(medicine)

rusty(1) (iou)



rusty adjective1. OE.
[from RUST noun1 + -Y1.]
Covered or affected with rust; rusted. OE.
N. Calder The rusty eyesores of scrapyards.
b. Of a plant: affected with rust or blight. E16.
Morally corrupt. LME-E17.
a. Of a person: old, worn-out, or decrepit in appearance. LME.
W. Irving A little rusty, musty old fellow.
b. No longer skilled or practised in a particular accomplishment through age or inactivity; spec. (of knowledge, an ability, etc.) deteriorated or impaired by neglect. E16.
C. A. Lindbergh I..was..a little rusty from not flying recently. W. S. Maugham Our wits..grow rusty because there is no occasion to use them.
c. Old; antiquated, obsolete. M16.
Rust-coloured; of or tending toward a reddish-brown or brownish-orange. LME.
G. Greene The handkerchief rusty with blood.
b. Of (esp. dark) clothing: shabby, worn, or faded with age or use. E18.
Ellis Peters A man..in a rusty black cassock.
Rugged; rough; unrefined; spec. (a) socially awkward, unmannerly; (b) (of a sound, the voice, etc.) hoarse, harsh, grating; (c) (chiefly Scot.) lacking verbal polish. LME.
Special collocations & comb.: rusty dab US = YELLOWTAIL flounder. rustyback (fern) a European dwarf fern of rocks and walls, Ceterach officinarum, with simply lobed fronds densely covered below with whitish then rust-coloured scales.
rustily adverb L16.
rustiness noun1 LME.