rustled; rustling
ˈrə-s(ə-)liŋ 
1
: to make or cause a rustle
2
a
: to act or move with energy or speed
b
: to forage food
3
: to steal cattle
1
: to cause to rustle
2
a
: to obtain by one's own exertions
—often used with up
able to rustle up $5,000 bail—
Jack McCallum
Jack McCallum
b
: forage
3
: to steal (livestock) especially from a farm or ranch
: a quick succession or confusion of small sounds
Synonyms
Examples of rustle in a Sentence
Verb
The trees rustled in the wind.
Her skirt rustled as she walked.
He rustled the papers on his desk.
Noun
He heard a rustle of leaves behind him.
Recent Examples on the Web
Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 3 Oct. 2024
Worshiped as the provider of food and shelter, Pachamama is believed to inhabit the mountains and bring about every natural phenomenon, from causing earthquakes to rustling the leaves on the trees.
—Monisha Rajesh, Travel + Leisure, 20 Oct. 2024
Michael Barnes, Austin American-Statesman, 7 Nov. 2024
All around them, acorns pinball to the forest floor as leaves rustle in the mid-September wind.
—Benjamin Cassidy, Smithsonian Magazine, 11 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for rustle 
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Verb
Both Harvest and April make space within the walls of the frame for the natural world to open up: for grass to rustle, for the sky to open, for mud to bubble and slap and sully all that is precious and may never again be so clean.
—Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 3 Oct. 2024
Worshiped as the provider of food and shelter, Pachamama is believed to inhabit the mountains and bring about every natural phenomenon, from causing earthquakes to rustling the leaves on the trees.
—Monisha Rajesh, Travel + Leisure, 20 Oct. 2024
Noun
Leaves that cling to deciduous trees, or rustle in heaps at their trunks, make do with subtle shades of brown.
—Michael Barnes, Austin American-Statesman, 7 Nov. 2024
All around them, acorns pinball to the forest floor as leaves rustle in the mid-September wind.
—Benjamin Cassidy, Smithsonian Magazine, 11 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for rustle
Articles Related to rustle
Dictionary Entries Near rustle
Cite this Entry
“Rustle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rustle. Accessed 1 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
rustle
1 of 2 verb
rus·tle
ˈrəs-əl
rustled; rustling
ˈrəs-(ə-)liŋ
1
: to make or cause to make a rustle
2
: to act or move with energy
3
: to steal (as cattle) from the range
rustle
2 of 2 noun
: a quick series of small sounds
the rustle of leaves
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