starring

American  

[stahr-ing] / ˈstɑr ɪŋ /

adjective

1. featured or celebrated as a star in a movie, on a sports team, etc..

   He was already the starring quarterback on his high school football team, which was on its way to a state championship.

2. (of a character or role) leading, central, or primary.

   The earliest performance I can remember is when I played the starring role in a drama called The Littlest Angel at church.

   As the town’s largest employer, the university also plays a starring role in the local economy.

3. featuring a specified performer.

   They didn't give a beginner a starring movie when I started acting 18 years ago.

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Etymology

Origin of starring

star ( def. ) + -ing ² ( def. )

Explanation

Your attention-grabbing friend might be one who goes through life imagining it's a movie starring her. Starring means being the main character in a movie or play. Starring is an adjective that's used when someone's at the center of things, like a concert starring a famous cellist. The Greek word aster became the English word star, which was first used to mean "to be featured in a play" in the 1820s. If you imagine a star shining brightly in the dark night sky, it's easy to see how starring came to mean "being the most important on the stage."

Example Sentences

Scripted offerings include the feature “Mexico ’86,” starring a wildly hustling Diego Luna.

From Los Angeles Times • May 28, 2026

Netflix is a Joke Festival brought a seven-day comedy explosion to Los Angeles, with stand-up, podcasts, variety shows, and musical performances starring comedy heavyweights like Seinfeld, Dave Chappelle, and Wanda Sykes.

From Los Angeles Times • May 27, 2026

The track has been sampled by Snoop Dogg and the Black Eyed Peas, and appeared in films like the 2009 hit romantic comedy The Proposal, starring Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds.

From BBC • May 23, 2026

Those included director James Gray’s crime drama “Paper Tiger,” starring Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson, and “The Man I Love,” starring Rami Malek as an artist dying of AIDS.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 23, 2026

“Jenna has a boyfriend, and Audrey might have one, too. Audrey’s not talking to me or Jenna. Macy’s starring in a school play. You’re never home anymore.”

From "Keep It Together, Keiko Carter" by Debbi Michiko Florence