rustlessadj.
/ˈrʌstləs/, U.S. /ˈrəs(t)ləs/ 1. Free from rust. Also figurative: not impaired or rendered obsolete by age or time; timeless.In quot. 1845: characterized by the absence of factors that cause rust.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > condition of matter > state of being undecayed > [adjective] > not rusted
unrusted1608
rustless1760
1760 ‘P. Pelagius’ Remarkable Satires 45 On the distant Mount full stately shines The Castle all of rustless polish'd Steel.
1845 R. Ford Hand-bk. Travellers in Spain II. xi. 786 Mistaking the dry rustless climate of Castile for her own..damp land.
1853 C. Brontë Villette I. viii. 139 When once a bloodless and rustless instrument was found, she was careful of the prize.
1880 S. Baring-Gould Mehalah II. xi. 207 The married life of some is smooth and shining and rustless like the gold.
a1923 H. Trench Poems (1924) II. 9 Back from a hosting and a desperate prey For corn and mares and rustless brass and beeves Naois, with the rest of Usnach's sons, Had come.
1972 J. Angira Silent Voices 83 The worn-out old men sing rustless epics from the beer-party gospels.
2007 New Yorker (Nexis) 30 July 90 ‘Star Wars’ showed us clean and rustless spacecraft, ‘Alien’ muscled in with dank and dripping ones.
2. Not susceptible to corrosion by rust; rustproof.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > materials > derived or manufactured material > metal > types of metal generally > [adjective] > rust-resistant
rustproof1691
rustless1856
rust-resisting1868
rustproofed1887
rust-resistant1891
1856 J. Ruskin Mod. Painters IV. 245 A strength as of imperishable iron, rustless by the air.
1884 Internat. Health Exhib. Official Catal. 57/2 Soil Pipe Traps in rustless iron and stoneware.
1913 Internat. Horseshoers Monthly Mag. Jan. 41 First, they're rustless. The golden plated threads cannot rust in the shoes.
?c1950 Nickel Alloy Spring Materials 6 Since all high-nickel alloys are rustless and highly resistant to corrosion, they are especially useful for applications where spring failures result from corrosive attack.
2006 C. Meldrum Easy Crocheted Accessories (2007) 32 (caption) Pin the pieces..onto a padded surface using rustless glass-headed pins.
Compounds
rustless steel n. now chiefly historical steel that does not rust; spec. = stainless steel n. 1.The term is often attributed to Harry Brearley (1871–1948), English metallurgist, one of the inventors of stainless steel in c1912.
ΚΠ
1884 Illustr. Sci. Monthly July 47/1 It may, in fact, be characterized as a rustless steel, while it possesses the brilliancy of very fine brass.
1935 W. S. Maugham Voice of Turtle in Nash's Pall Mall Mag. Jan. 8/2 The drawing-room..was large and bare, furnished with rustless steel chairs.
2004 M. Shujaat Islam & Indian Culture iii. 108 The Chinese had been pioneers both in the manufacture of rustless steel and gunpowder.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2011; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.1760