rut

¹ American  

[ruht] / rʌt /

noun

1. a furrow or track in the ground, especially one made by the passage of a vehicle or vehicles.

2. any furrow, groove, etc.

3. a fixed or established mode of procedure or course of life, usually dull or unpromising.

   to fall into a rut.

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verb (used with object)

rutted, rutting

1. to make a rut or ruts in; furrow.

rut ² American  

[ruht] / rʌt /

noun

1. the periodically recurring sexual excitement of the deer, goat, sheep, etc.

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verb (used without object)

rutted, rutting

1. to be in the condition of rut.

rut ¹ British  

/ rʌt /

noun

1. a groove or furrow in a soft road, caused by wheels

2. any deep mark, hole, or groove

3. a narrow or predictable way of life, set of attitudes, etc; dreary or undeviating routine (esp in the phrase in a rut )

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verb

1. (tr) to make a rut or ruts in

rut ² British  

/ rʌt /

noun

1. a recurrent period of sexual excitement and reproductive activity in certain male ruminants, such as the deer, that corresponds to the period of oestrus in females

2. another name for oestrus

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verb

1. (intr) (of male ruminants) to be in a period of sexual excitement and activity

rut Idioms  

1. see in a rut.

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Etymology

Origin of rut¹

First recorded in 1570–80; perhaps variant of route

Origin of rut²

1375–1425; late Middle English rutte < Middle French rut, ruit < Late Latin rugītus a roaring, equivalent to Latin rugī ( re ) to roar + -tus suffix of v. action

Explanation

A rut is a groove in the earth, like an indent caused by wheels. It's also a boring routine that can be hard to break. If you’re stuck in a rut, you’ve been doing the same old thing for too long. If you see a groove in the ground, especially one caused by a bike or car, that's a rut. If a rut is deep enough, you could get stuck in it, which may be why the word has another meaning. If your life has become boring, stale, and monotonous, you're in a rut. Someone who works the same job for decades may feel like they're in a rut and need to make a change.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

rut rutted rutting

An old-school tip for finding new music: If Spotify’s algorithm makes you feel stuck in a musical rut, there’s an easy way out.

From Slate ● Jul. 22, 2026

Well, for starters, they realised when they were in a rut and acted on it.

From BBC ● Jul. 7, 2026

Lennar dropped 3.4% after the homebuilder’s second-quarter revenue missed Wall Street’s expectations, signaling that the housing market is still in a rut.

From Barron's ● Jun. 12, 2026

The U.S. labor market has climbed out of a rut.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 5, 2026

Usually people got in a rut putting honey bears on them.

From "The Secret Life of Bees" by Sue Monk Kidd

A huge flag is draped across the rutted pillars protruding from the ruins like concrete teeth.

From BBC ● Apr. 15, 2026

Dipak Magar, 39, is proud of the small house he has built on a bend of a rutted road.

From Barron's ● Feb. 16, 2026

Costa Rica’s Pacuare Lodge is so remote that visitors must arrive via white-water raft, by air or on a rutted 4WD-only road.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 10, 2025

And while it won’t get you to the deepest reaches of nature like a Wrangler, its ample ground clearance and all-wheel drive make easy work of rutted trails, snowy pavement and remote fire roads.

From Seattle Times ● Mar. 20, 2024

Henry swerved suddenly to the left, steering the truck down a rutted side road.

From "Out of Darkness" by Ashley Hope Pérez

Compared with conventional asphalt, PMA is more flexible and better able to resist cracking, rutting, and water damage, making it well suited to Hawaii's tropical climate.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 28, 2026

Deer are currently in rutting season, when males attempt to establish their dominance against other males as part of their reproductive strategy.

From Washington Times ● Nov. 7, 2023

“Many people specifically go to Kincaid Park in the fall to photograph and view rutting behavior.”

From Seattle Times ● Mar. 31, 2023

Extreme heat can soften pavements, leading to more cracks, buckling and rutting or surface depressions.

From BBC ● Feb. 10, 2022

They have a hoarse, distant bellow like a rutting stag and make their way high above the howl and whistle of the smaller shells.

From "All Quiet on the Western Front: A Novel" by Erich Maria Remarque