Star Wars

American  

noun

1. a U.S. weapons research program begun in 1984 to explore technologies, including ground- and space-based lasers, for destroying attacking missiles and warheads.

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Star Wars British  

noun

1. Formal name: Strategic Defense Initiative.   SDI.  (in the US) a proposed system of artificial satellites armed with lasers to destroy enemy missiles in space

2. (modifier; sometimes not capitals) of, relating to, or denoting this system

   Star Wars defence

   star wars policy

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Star Wars ¹ Cultural  

1. A series of popular science fiction motion pictures created by George Lucas. The first trilogy debuted in 1977 with Star Wars: A New Hope. The Empire Strikes Back and The Return of the Jedi followed in the 1980s. Prequels, Episode I: The Phantom Menace and Episode 2: Attack of the Clones, were recently released. The films are noted for combining classic themes of good versus evil with cutting-edge special effects.

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Star Wars ² Cultural  

1. A popular name, taken from the title of a film, for the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) of President Ronald Reagan. “Star Wars” involves the development by the United States of a defense in outer space against intercontinental ballistic missiles.

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Etymology

Origin of Star Wars

C20: popularly named after the science fiction film Star Wars (1977) by George Lucas

Example Sentences

"Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu," Disney's latest entry in the blockbuster sci-fi franchise, plummeted nearly 70 percent in its second weekend in theaters, taking in $25 million and finishing in third place.

From Barron's • May 31, 2026

Meanwhile, Mark Hamill, who portrayed Star Wars protagonist Luke Skywalker, wrote that he and his wife Marilou were "deeply saddened by the loss of our lifelong friend".

From BBC • May 30, 2026

Since then, the San Francisco-based studio has largely focused on its Star Wars streaming shows, which have included both live-action and animated series.

From Los Angeles Times • May 24, 2026

Star Wars returned to theaters at the top of the box-office charts after a seven-year absence, but it didn’t quite hit lightspeed.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 24, 2026

In second grade he yelled at me because I got to the Star Wars Legos before he did.

From "A Good Kind of Trouble" by Lisa Moore Ramée