stellar
Americanadjective
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of or relating to the stars; consisting of stars.
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like a star, as in brilliance, shape, etc.
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pertaining to a preeminent performer, athlete, etc.
adjective
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of, relating to, involving, or resembling a star or stars
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of or relating to star entertainers
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informal outstanding or immense
companies are registering stellar profits
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of stellar
First recorded in 1650–60; from Late Latin stellāris, from stell(a) “star” ( see also star) + -āris -ar 1
Explanation
Meaning outstanding, wonderful, better than everything else, stellar is a word of praise or excitement. Thomas Edison invented many things, but his stellar achievement might have been the light bulb. Stellar literally means "like a star." When it comes time for your debut on Broadway, you will sure hope that the reviews say that you delivered a stellar performance. You could also use stellar to talk about actual stars, of course, or you could even blend the two: enjoy the stellar beauty of your beloved under the stellar light of a moonless night.
Vocabulary lists containing stellar
Oh, My Stars! The Language of Outer Space
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Oh, My Stars! A Solstice Sampler
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Space Science (Astronomy) - Introductory
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Now Kane's stellar form and fitness suggest the time might be right for England and their talisman to overcome the barrier that has brought 60 years of pain.
From BBC • Jun. 6, 2026
Freshly grated pecorino romano is another stellar choice to amp up the saltiness and nutiness of your fresh pie.
From Salon • Jun. 6, 2026
If you’re phone is set to track the Dow Jones Industrial Average, it looked like a stellar day on Wall Street.
From Barron's • Jun. 4, 2026
That isn’t a stellar increase amid an AI boom that is supposed to transform how people work and live.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 2, 2026
Such societies might live to a prosperous old age, their lifetimes measured perhaps on geological or stellar evolutionary time scales.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
