rustic

American  

[ruhs-tik] / ˈrʌs tɪk /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or living in the country, as distinguished from towns or cities; rural.

   Antonyms:

   urban

2. simple, artless, or unsophisticated.

3. uncouth, rude, or boorish.

4. made of roughly dressed limbs or roots of trees, as garden seats.

5. (of stonework) having the surfaces rough or irregular and the joints sunken or beveled.

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noun

1. a country person.

2. an unsophisticated country person.

rustic British  

/ ˈrʌstɪk, rʌˈstɪsɪtɪ /

adjective

1. of, characteristic of, or living in the country; rural

2. having qualities ascribed to country life or people; simple; unsophisticated

   rustic pleasures

3. crude, awkward, or uncouth

4. made of untrimmed branches

   a rustic seat

5. denoting or characteristic of a style of furniture popular in England in the 18th and 19th centuries, in which the legs and feet of chairs, tables, etc, were made to resemble roots, trunks, and branches of trees

6. (of masonry) having a rusticated finish

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noun

1. a person who comes from or lives in the country

2. an unsophisticated, simple, or clownish person from the country

3. Also called: rusticwork.  brick or stone having a rough finish

Related Words

See rural.

Other Word Forms

• nonrustic adjective
• nonrustically adverb
• rustical adjective
• rustically adverb
• rusticalness noun
• rusticity noun
• rusticly adverb
• rusticness noun
• unrustic adjective
• unrustically adverb

Etymology

Origin of rustic

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin rūsticus, equivalent to rūs “the country” ( rural ) + -ticus adjective suffix

Example Sentences

Enchanted with Lenox, Mass., and the rustic charm of the Berkshires, they bought a large portion of the historic Wheatleigh estate.

From The Wall Street Journal

Tear them into rustic chunks and toast lightly in butter until the edges crisp and scent curls through the kitchen.

From Salon

At times in “Hamnet,” 1582, the year of their marriage, could pass for a millennium earlier, a rustic era where neither has anything more pressing to do than canoodle under the trees.

From Los Angeles Times

But the kudos was a double-edged sword for Gyngell, who left the cafe a year after the award, saying she was frustrated by customers who expected a traditional Michelin experience at her rustic cafe.

From BBC

She also delighted in “any thing ridiculous,” such as the vogue for luxurious rustic cottages and fake Gothic ruins.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• bucolic
• country
• pastoral
• picturesque
• simple
• verdant