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starter

[stahr-ter]

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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR starter ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a person or thing that starts.

a person who gives the signal to begin, as for a race, the running of a train, bus, elevator, etc.

a device that starts an internal-combustion engine without a need for cranking by hand.

a person or thing that starts in a race or contest: Only five starters finished the race.

a culture of bacteria used to start a particular fermentation, as in the manufacture of cheese, buttermilk, sour cream, etc.

Cookery. sourdough(def 1).

Slang. a shill, as at a gaming table in a casino.

Cribbage. the card turned face up on the stack before the play.

adjective

constituting a basis or beginning: a starter set of dishes; a starter home.

Idioms

for starters, Informal. as the first step or part; initially; first: We will have soup for starters. For starters, he doesn't even know how to drive.

Origin of starter

First recorded in 1530–40; start + -er¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for starters

opener, originator, pioneer, innovator, inventor, initiator

Examples from the Web for starters

Contemporary Examples of starters

For starters, that religious-themed movies are difficult to make and even more difficult to make successful.
Are You There, God? It’s Nicolas Cage and the Year in Cinematically Pimped Religion
Matthew Paul Turner
December 28, 2014
For starters, from a purely practical, all-hands-on-deck position, I say if you can do the job, you should keep the job.
Justice Ginsburg Shouldn’t Quit Just Yet
Kevin Bleyer
December 1, 2014
For starters: No one knows what the future strategy against ISIS will look like.
The Pentagon Is Officially Clueless About the ISIS War
Tim Mak
November 13, 2014
For starters, both the bats and the virus have to be present.
Bats’ Link to Ebola Finally Solved
Carrie Arnold
November 12, 2014
For starters, the average age of the Best Actor Oscar nominees last year was 47.
Why Does Oscar Hate Young Men?
Kevin Fallon
November 9, 2014

Historical Examples of starters

There were more than forty starters, of which eight finished.
Flying Machines
W.J. Jackman and Thos. H. Russell
Some use their starters frequently, and make only short runs.
The Automobile Storage Battery
O. A. Witte
Well, while there were two starters, there was only one finisher.
On a Donkey's Hurricane Deck
R. Pitcher Woodward
Crack went the starters pistol, and the runners were away on their course.
For the Honor of Randall
Lester Chadwick
These be fine sandwiches and will sarve us very well for starters.
The Boy Patrol on Guard
Edward S. Ellis

British Dictionary definitions for starters

starter

noun

a device for starting an internal-combustion engine, usually consisting of a powerful electric motor that engages with the flywheelFormerly called self-starter

US a person who organizes the timely departure of buses, trains, etc

a person who supervises and signals the start of a race

a competitor who starts in a race or contest

informal, mainly Australian and NZ an acceptable or practicable proposition, plan, idea, etc

Australian and NZ informal a person who is willing to engage in a particular activity

a culture of bacteria used to start fermentation, as in making cheese or yogurt

mainly British the first course of a meal

(modifier) designed to be used by a novicea starter kit

for starters slang in the first place

under starter's orders

(of horses in a race) awaiting the start signal
(of a person) eager or ready to begin

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

Word Origin and History for starters

starter

n.

c.1400, stertour "instigator; one who starts," agent noun from start (v.). For starters "to begin with" is 1873, American English colloquial. Starter home is from 1976; starter set is from 1946, originally of china.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper

Idioms and Phrases with starters

starters

see under for openers.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.