four-star
Americanadjective
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of or being a full general or admiral, as indicated by four stars on an insignia.
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rated or considered as being of the highest quality, especially as indicated by four printed stars assigned in some rating systems.
a four-star restaurant.
Etymology
Origin of four-star
First recorded in 1920–25
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.
A product with a four-star average rating would drop to 3.25 if a one-star review were added, which could push it down in ranked search results.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 12, 2026
Among them were the first female commandant of the Coast Guard, the head of the Army’s Chaplain Corps, and a four-star general overseeing the Army’s Transformation and Training Command.
From Salon • May 1, 2026
The 1988 presidential campaign of Alexander Haig, a former four-star general who served as Ronald Reagan’s first secretary of state, flamed out amid GOP infighting over the Iran–Contra affair.
From Slate • Apr. 6, 2026
Former Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, a retired four-star general, spoke to more than 1,000 people in a ballroom.
From Barron's • Mar. 27, 2026
Now, I’m no hotel connoisseur, but one glance at the weathered sign told me that our stay was unlikely to be a four-star mints-on-your-pillow-type experience.
From "Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children" by Ransom Riggs
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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.