star

American  

[stahr] / stɑr /

noun

• stars
  plural

1. any of the heavenly bodies, except the moon, appearing as fixed luminous points in the sky at night.

2. Astronomy. any of the large, self-luminous, heavenly bodies, as the sun, Polaris, etc.

3. any heavenly body.

4. Astrology. a heavenly body, especially a planet, considered as influencing humankind and events.

5. a person's destiny, fortune, temperament, etc., regarded as influenced and determined by the stars.

6. a conventionalized figure usually having five or six points radiating from or disposed about a center.

7. this figure used as an ornament, award, badge, mark of excellence, etc..

   The movie was awarded three stars.

8. Jewelry.

   1. a gem having the star cut.

   2. the asterism in a crystal or a gemstone, as in a star sapphire.

   3. a crystal or a gemstone having such asterism.

   4. star facet.

9. Printing. an asterisk.

10. a person who is celebrated or distinguished in some art, profession, or other field.

11. a prominent actor, singer, or the like, especially one who plays the leading role in a performance.

12. U.S. Military. battle star.

13. U.S. Navy.

    1. a gold or bronze star worn on the ribbon of a decoration or medal to represent a second or subsequent award of the same decoration or medal.

    2. a silver star worn in place of five gold or bronze stars.

14. a white spot on the forehead of a horse.

15. Heraldry. a mullet.

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adjective

1. celebrated, prominent, or distinguished; preeminent.

   a star basketball player; a star reporter.

2. of or relating to a star or stars.

verb (used with object)

• stars,
  present (3rd person singular)
• starred,
  past participle,  past
• starring
  present participle

1. to set with or as with stars; spangle.

2. to feature as a star.

   an old movie starring Rudolph Valentino.

3. to mark with a star or asterisk, as for special notice.

verb (used without object)

• stars,
  present (3rd person singular)
• starred,
  past participle,  past
• starring
  present participle

1. to shine as a star; be brilliant or prominent.

2. (of a performer) to appear as a star.

   He starred in several productions of Shaw's plays.

idioms

1. make someone see stars, to deal someone a severe blow causing the illusion of brilliant streaks of light before the eyes.

   The blow on the head made him see stars, and the next thing he knew he was in the hospital.

2. thank one's lucky stars, to acknowledge one's good fortune; be grateful: Also thank one's stars.

   Instead of complaining about hospital bills she should thank her lucky stars she's still alive.

star British  

/ stɑː /

noun

1. any of a vast number of celestial objects that are visible in the clear night sky as points of light

2. 1. a hot gaseous mass, such as the sun, that radiates energy, esp as light and infrared radiation, usually derived from thermonuclear reactions in the interior, and in some cases as ultraviolet, radio waves, and X-rays. The surface temperature can range from about 2100 to 40 000°C See also Hertzsprung-Russell diagram giant star white dwarf neutron star black hole

   2. ( as modifier )

      a star catalogue

3. astrology

   1. a celestial body, esp a planet, supposed to influence events, personalities, etc

   2. (plural) another name for horoscope

4. an emblem shaped like a conventionalized star, usually with five or more points, often used as a symbol of rank, an award, etc

5. a small white blaze on the forehead of an animal, esp a horse

6. Also called: star facet.  any of the eight triangular facets cut in the crown of a brilliant

7. 1. a distinguished or glamorous celebrity, often from the entertainment world

   2. ( as modifier )

      star quality

8. another word for asterisk

9. (often capital) a type of keelboat, designed to be crewed by two people

10. slang:prison a convict serving his first prison sentence

11. to see or seem to see bright moving pinpoints of light, as from a blow on the head, increased blood pressure, etc

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verb

1. (tr) to mark or decorate with a star or stars

2. to feature or be featured as a star

   ``Greed'' starred Erich von Stroheim

   Olivier starred in ``Hamlet''

star Scientific  

/ stär /

1. A large, spherical celestial body consisting of a mass of gas that is hot enough to sustain nuclear fusion and thus produce radiant energy. Stars begin their life cycle as clouds of gas and dust called nebulae and develop, through gravitation and accretion, into increasingly hot and dense protostars. In order to reach the temperature at which nuclear reactions are ignited (about 5 million degrees K), a protostar must have at least 80 times the mass of Jupiter. For most of its life a star fuses hydrogen into helium in its core, during which period it is known as a dwarf star and is classed according to its surface temperature and luminosity (or spectral type) on a continuum called the main sequence in the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram. When a star exhausts the hydrogen in its core, it typically develops into one of several non-main-sequence forms depending on how massive it is. Smaller stars, with masses less than eight times that of the Sun, become red giants and end their lives, after blowing away their outer layers, as white dwarfs. More massive stars become supergiants and end their lives, after exploding in a supernova, as either a neutron star or a black hole.

2. Any of the celestial bodies visible to the naked eye at night as fixed, usually twinkling points of light, including binary and multiple star systems.

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star Cultural  

1. An object in the sky that sends out its own light, generated by nuclear reactions in its center. There are many billions of stars in our galaxy, the Milky Way.

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star More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing star

• born under a lucky star
• see stars
• thank one's lucky stars

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Discover More

Each star has a definite lifetime and dies when it uses up its supply of fuel. (See black hole, neutron star, supernova, and white dwarf.)

New stars are forming constantly.

All chemical elements heavier than helium are created in the center of stars and are returned to space when the star dies.

Our own sun is a medium-sized star.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• starless
  adjective
• starlike
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• stars
  plural

Participles

• starring
  present
• starred
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• star
  simple
• stars
  simple
• have starred
  perfect
• has starred
  perfect
• am starring
  progressive
• are starring
  progressive
• is starring
  progressive
• have been starring
  perfect progressive
• has been starring
  perfect progressive

Past

• starred
  simple
• had starred
  perfect
• was starring
  progressive
• were starring
  progressive
• had been starring
  perfect progressive

Future

• will star
  simple
• will have starred
  perfect
• will be starring
  progressive
• will have been starring
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of star

First recorded before 900; Middle English sterre, Old English steorra; cognate with Old High German sterra; akin to Old High German sterno, Old Norse stjarna, Gothic stairno, Latin stella, Greek astḗr, Sanskrit stṛ

Explanation

A star twinkles in the night sky. To put it more scientifically, it’s a celestial body of hot gases radiating energy. A star is also a person who dazzles — the star of the show or the star archaeologist. If you're starring in a Broadway show, your name gets top billing — you've got the biggest part or maybe you're the best known performer, the actor people are wild to see, the one with the most "star power." If you believe in fate or astrology, you might "thank your lucky stars" for your good fortune. Star is the same root as the Greek aster, as in asterisk — a star symbol.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

star stars starred starring

Actress Hayden Panettiere, star of US TV shows Heroes and Nashville, has died aged 36.

From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026

Panettiere was a child actor who became a well-known celebrity and star of both TV shows and movies.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026

Báez still has plenty to prove before being anointed as a star.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026

A massive star has been torn apart and gradually consumed by a black hole in a spectacular event that scientists compared to "preparing a snack for lunch."

From Science Daily ● Aug. 16, 2026

“He’s the star of Man U. He’s a star on the national team too.”

From "City Spies" by James Ponti

That will remain their focus as attention turns to rivalling the sport's greatest stars on its biggest stages.

From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026

Thrust into the spotlight, she was invited to an event alongside film and music stars.

From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026

They need Betts to be that right-handed hitter who will keep opposing pitchers honest in a lineup of lefty stars.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026

Astronomers have previously observed black holes apparently consuming stars in events known as Tidal Disruption Events.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 16, 2026

The first stars were glittering in the sky and on the warm breeze, the scent of earth and heart berries came to me.

From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith

She starred on “Nashville” and, before that, “Heroes.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026

She starred alongside Kate Hudson in the 2004 film Raising Helen and was beloved by a generation of fans for playing Britney Allen in teen cheerleading movie Bring It On: All or Nothing in 2006.

From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026

Bright appeared on Strictly Come Dancing in 2015, and has starred in films including Ali G Indahouse in 2002 and 2005's Kinky Boots.

From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2026

That year, he starred in a short film called “Dating Up,” which is not listed under his IMDb or Wikipedia filmographies.

From Salon ● Aug. 6, 2026

Trees inside, studded with pink blossoms and starred with lights.

From "Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng

Hayden Panettiere, the former child actor who became a household name as an indestructible cheerleader on “Heroes” before starring as a troubled country singer on “Nashville,” has died.

From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2026

Despite starring Derry Girls' O'Donnell and Tara Lynne O'Neill, McMenamin said that's where the comparisons end with Lisa McGee's hit show, which was also set during the same period in Northern Ireland.

From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026

Reynolds, 34, seems surprisingly relaxed considering today marks the final two performances of “1536,” a play she’s been starring in at the Ambassadors Theatre since early May.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026

Read an explainer of the year’s most bizarre rom-com: One Night Only, the buzzy new movie starring Monica Barbaro and Callum Turner, is garnering plenty of chatter—and raising plenty of questions.

From Slate ● Aug. 10, 2026

He told me that the movies were changed each week, but when another picture came to Stamps starring Kay Francis he would tell me and we’d go together.

From "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou

Related Words

• celebrity
• favorite
• hero
• idol
• name
• superstar