Where does “rustbucket” come from?

rustbucket (English) comes from English bucket, from Middle English boket, from Anglo-Norman buket, from Old French buc, from Latin buccus, from Frankish bukk, from Proto-Germanic *bukkaz, from Proto-Indo-European bʰuǵ- — young he-goat.

rustbucket (English): An old, neglected vehicle, usually a car, a...

Definitions

  1. An old, neglected vehicle, usually a car, a...

Ancestry of “rustbucket”, step by step

rustbucket traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English bucket

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishbucketA container made of rigid material, often with a...
2Middle Englishboketbucket
3Anglo-Normanbukettub, pail; bucket
4Old Frenchbucabdomen; object with a cavity; trunk, torso;...
5Latinbuccushe-goat
6Frankishbukkmale goat; buck, goat; buck, male goat
7Proto-Germanic*bukkaz
8Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰuǵ-buck, he-goat
9Proto-North CaucasianbVχc̣V
10Proto-North CaucasianbVc̣Vyoung he-goat

via English rust

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishrustThe deteriorated state of iron or steel as a...
2Middle Englishrustrust oxidisation of iron or steel
3Old Englishrūstrust
4Proto-Germanicrustazrust
5Proto-Indo-Europeanrudʰso-red
6Proto-Indo-Europeanh₁rewdʰ-red
Every word from Proto-North Caucasian bVc̣V