ster.

¹ American  

abbreviation

1. sterling.

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-ster ² American  

1. a suffix used in forming nouns, often derogatory, referring especially to occupation, habit, or association.

   gamester; songster; trickster.

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-ster British  

suffix

1. indicating a person who is engaged in a certain activity Compare -stress

   prankster

   songster

2. indicating a person associated with or being something specified

   mobster

   youngster

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Usage

What does -ster mean? The form -ster is a suffix that marks an agent noun. Agent nouns are nouns that indicate a person who does an action, and broadly speaking, -ster means "doer." The suffix -ster is similar to -er, another agent noun, but -ster sometimes implies a more negative feeling about the doer. This suffix is used in a wide variety of informal terms.The suffix -ster comes from the Old English -estre, where it denoted female agent nouns. The equivalent for male agent nouns was -er, as mentioned above, which has not developed the negative connotation that the traditionally feminine -ster has.What are variants of -ster?When agent nouns ending in -ster are used to refer to a feminine-gendered element, -ster becomes -stress, as in seamstress (a female seamster). Similar suffixes include -ess, as in stewardess (a female steward), and -euse, as in chanteuse (a female chanteur, or singer).Want to know more? Read our Words That Use -euse and -stress articles.

Etymology

Origin of -ster

Middle English; Old English -estre; cognate with Dutch -ster, Middle Low German -( e ) ster

Example Sentences

Show times for Melania are not listed on the websites of South Africa's two main cinema chains, Ster Kinekor and Nu Metro.

From BBC

Ster Kinekor's publicity page for Melania is not accessible.

From BBC

"Melania" was not listed on the websites of the Nu Metro or Ster Kinekor theatres on Thursday, the day before its international release on January 30.

From Barron's

Tamara van der Ster, a senior supervisor at AFM, said the review does not mean brokerages will be punished.

From Reuters

The AFM's Van der Ster said that only a small percentage of investors are believed to trade with unregistered foreign brokerages such as Binance.

From Reuters