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
- gold-star adjective
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
Adam Yosim, a Costco member who lives in Boca Raton, Fla., did just that: He upgraded from the gold star to executive level and found the 2% reward didn’t justify the added $65 fee, so he downgraded back to gold star and got a refund.
From MarketWatch
Dima's commander, Alexei Ksenofontov, was awarded the Gold Star, the highest state medal, and made a "Hero of Russia" in 2024.
From BBC
Hsiao sees healthcare as the “gold star example” of a sector getting AI right, as these firms have used it for years to speed up molecule discovery.
From Barron's
Hsiao sees healthcare as the “gold star example” of a sector getting AI right, as these firms have used it for years to speed up molecule discovery.
From Barron's
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.
