Becrusted

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Covered with a hard layer or crust that sticks firmly to the surface
2. Having a crust-like coating formed over an object or area by accumulation
3. Encrusted with a solid outer layer that results from natural or artificial deposits

Etymology: "Becrusted" is built from "becrust," a verb formed by adding the prefix "be-" to "crust." The prefix in this sense is an old English device that turns a noun into a verb meaning to cover or surround with that thing, so "becrust" means to cover with a crust, and "becrusted" is the form of that verb used as an adjective, describing something already coated in a hard outer layer. The base noun "crust" is itself older and more concrete than its verbal form suggests. It comes from Old French "crouste," which in turn descends from Latin "crusta," meaning rind, shell or hard covering. English took the noun first, and the verb built on it, which is why the word sounds so plainly descriptive: a surface gets a crust, and the surface is said to be becrusted.

Synonyms: encrusted, covered, coated, crusted, caked

Antonyms: bare, exposed, naked, uncovered, clean