rust belt

noun

variants often Rust Belt
: the northeastern and midwestern states of the U.S. in which heavy industry has declined

called also rust bowl

Examples of rust belt in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
There are other particularly sort of rust belts, industrial Northeast, and Midwest cities that have had some blight, like for example, Pittsburgh. Dana Taylor, USA Today, 18 Dec. 2025 And in January, a month after the EPA’s ban on TCE was finalized, the Trump administration moved to undo it, even as new evidence emerged of Parkinson’s clusters in the rust belt, where exposure to trichloroethylene is high. David Ferry, Wired News, 10 Dec. 2025 Gavin Moulton, the writer and photographer behind the popular X account rust belt roadtrip, circulated the post more. Hope Karnopp, jsonline.com, 21 Oct. 2025 National Republicans have targeted Mrvan’s seat as a flip opportunity for the last two election cycles and are poised to again in 2026, especially as Northwest Indiana’s rust belt communities have voted more Republican over the years. Brittany Carloni, IndyStar, 5 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for rust belt

Word History

First Known Use

1982, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of rust belt was in 1982

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Rust belt.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rust%20belt. Accessed 2 Jan. 2026.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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