starlight

[ stahr-lahyt ]

/ ˈstɑrˌlaɪt /

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noun

the light emanating from the stars.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of starlight

Middle English word dating back to 1325–75; see origin at star, light¹

Words nearby starlight

starkly, stark-naked, stark raving mad, Starkville, starlet, starlight, starlike, star lily, starling, starlit, star map

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use starlight in a sentence

By peering at that filtered starlight, a sensitive telescope can tease out the gases in the atmosphere.
The long-awaited James Webb Space Telescope has a big to-do list|Lisa Grossman|January 13, 2022|Science News For Students
With Webb, scientists will be able to analyze starlight as it passes through—and gets distorted by—a given planet’s atmosphere.
The Most Powerful Telescope Ever Built Is Ready to Unlock the Mysteries of the Cosmos|Jeffrey Kluger|December 20, 2021|Time
Prior to the first starlight, the universe was shrouded by a “dense, obscuring fog of primordial gas,” as the National Science Foundation explains.
The largest space telescope in history is about to blow our minds|Brian Resnick|September 22, 2021|Vox
Theo, like me, does climate modeling akin to that done for the Earth, figuring out what the spectrum of starlight filtered through an exoplanetary atmosphere can reveal to us.
What Is Life? - Issue 106: Intelligent Life|Caleb Scharf|September 16, 2021|Nautilus

It then looks for changes in starlight caused by dark objects floating by.
Rogue planets wander the galaxy all alone|Christopher Crockett|December 23, 2020|Science News For Students
Unfortunately, the Starlight Pavilion chose to give their power to bullies and canceled the screening.
Animated Film Roils Hindus in Queens|Salil Tripathi|July 24, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Our poor planet will be but a silent ghost whirling on its dark path in the starlight.
The Unsolved Riddle of Social Justice|Stephen Leacock
They traveled by starlight then, following as best they could the tall trees that marked the road.
The Amazing Interlude|Mary Roberts Rinehart
It was clear starlight, and she sat down beside the newly sodded mound, and rested her brow upon it.
Alone|Marion Harland
On each side of me walked a warrior, invisible except as when we crossed a glade where the starlight filtered down.
A Virginia Scout|Hugh Pendexter
The Norman saw the silver band of a stream creeping to the Kuweik—barely flashing under the starlight, for moon there was none.
God Wills It!|William Stearns Davis

British Dictionary definitions for starlight

starlight

/ (ˈstɑːˌlaɪt) /

noun

the light emanating from the stars

adjective Also: starlighted

of or like starlight

Also: starlit (ˈstɑːˌlɪt) illuminated by starlight

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012