Rust's syntax is basically a bog-standard C/C++ descendant, but with a slightly cleaner and more regular grammar.

Isn’t it actually a Standard ML and C/C++ hybrid? The window dressing is C/C++ sure, but the lack of statements, semicolons, the presence of enums, etc are quite reminiscent of SML.

SML is definitely the next biggest influence, but it's an SML frosting on top of a C-family base.

What was the comment context here? It's flagged so I didn't see it.

I think it’s because the typelevel expressions (e.g. trait constraints, lifetimes, impl<T> for Trait<U>), ubiquitous refs, and other type annotations have a much more complicated and explicit grammar than what we tend to see in other languages.

It is really not that much like C++ syntax in that respect nor is it cleaner. In other respects, it is more like a cleaner C++, but this is an aspect that is in fact more complicated, and harder to read and write.

Rust people need to be more honest about what Rust is really like.