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.
If you’re fortunate, you’ll land some anonymous buzz, an interview and one of those goofy gold star stickers teams now post on social media.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 14, 2026
She gets a gold star in my book any day.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2024
That was a difficult alarm to get up for but if you're here with us, gold star.
From BBC ● Mar. 22, 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
Behind one of them hung a gold star which announced that a son of the house was serving the country, and behind another stood Leper.
From "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles
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.
