gold star
Americannoun
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a gold-colored star displayed, as on a service flag, to indicate that a member of one's family, organization, or the like, was killed in war as a member of the armed forces.
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Informal.
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symbolic approval or recognition for outstanding merit or effort.
You get the gold star for cooking such a gourmet dinner.
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anything that represents an outstanding effort or achievement.
Her promotion was the gold star she'd been working for.
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Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of gold star
An Americanism dating back to 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.
"I wrote 'F1 driver.' That's the shining gold star."
From BBC • Mar. 13, 2026
Sarah Krieger recently got the shiniest gold star at work.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 6, 2025
She gets a gold star in my book any day.
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 10, 2024
One of the first Christmas trees visitors will see is decorated with wooden gold star ornaments engraved with the names of fallen service members.
From Seattle Times • Nov. 27, 2023
But as the weeks rolled by and each new day of enthusiastic labor added another gold star to my shining record he began to believe: timidly at first but at last triumphantly.
From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt
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.
