noun
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a star, esp the North Star, used in navigation or astronomy as a point of reference
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something that serves as a guide or model
Etymology
Origin of lodestar
First recorded in 1325–75, lodestar is from Middle English loode sterre. See lode, star
Explanation
When a sailor uses a star to navigate by, it's called a lodestar. The most commonly used lodestar is the bright and easily spotted Polaris, also known as the North Star. Navigating on a clear night at sea, you'll need a lodestar to guide you so you always know what direction you're going. Something that similarly guides you through life and its tricky decisions can also be called a lodestar. This might be a mentor or some other person who helps you figure out which direction to go, or a guiding principle. Lodestar, "star that leads the way," uses the "way or course" meaning of lode.
Vocabulary lists containing lodestar
From Ascension to Zenith: Astronomy and Stargazing Terms
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"Myth as Structure in Toni Morrison's Song of Solomon" by A. Leslie Harris
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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.
From that moment on, the sunken warship became Mr. Dooley’s lodestar, even as he “became ever more cynical” about the Cuban revolution.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 21, 2026
Once a cultural lodestar, Ye now occupies a far more polarizing place: embraced by a loyal fringe, shunned by former collaborators and largely exiled from mainstream music and fashion.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 10, 2025
McDonald’s, obviously, was meant to be America’s thing, our birthright of processed riches and our lodestar toward joy and cardiovascular decay.
From Slate • Sep. 7, 2023
There is a word in the Nguni languages of Southern Africa that was, I think, George's lodestar.
From BBC • Jul. 24, 2023
To the unabashedly chauvinistic Time, the youthful Professor Lawrence’s career symbolized the emergence of American science as the lodestar of international research.
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
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.
