Rustler
noun, slang ·2 syllables ·Moderate ·College level
Definitions
- 1 One who rustles; a cattle (or other livestock) thief.
"Two years have now passed since Hayward’s farm in north Wales was raided, leading to the loss of tens of thousands of bees. But the rustlers have continued to be active. Most recently they have targeted the property of one of her Anglesey neighbours, where around 40,000 bees were taken last month."
- 2 someone who steals livestock (especially cattle) wordnet
- 3 A bovine animal that can care for itself in any circumstances.
- 4 An alert, energetic, driving person. US, Western, dated, especially, slang
- 5 That which makes a rustling noise.
"Like this weekend, with moderate temperatures, the sky a bowl of blue, and the wind not a cold curse or a hot furnace, but a bit of a leaf-rustler, a cooling refreshment."
Example
More examples"Two years have now passed since Hayward’s farm in north Wales was raided, leading to the loss of tens of thousands of bees. But the rustlers have continued to be active. Most recently they have targeted the property of one of her Anglesey neighbours, where around 40,000 bees were taken last month."
Etymology
From rustle + -er.
More for "rustler"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.