asterisk
noun
as·ter·isk
| \ ˈas-tə-ˌrisk
, especially in plural also nonstandard -ËŒrik\
, especially in plural also nonstandard -ËŒrik\
plural asterisks
Definition of asterisk
(Entry 1 of 2)
1
: the character * used in printing or writing as a reference mark, as an indication of the omission of letters or words, to denote a hypothetical or unattested linguistic form, or for various arbitrary meanings
2
: the character * thought of as being appended to something (such as an athletic accomplishment included in a record book) typically in order to indicate that there is a limiting fact or consideration which makes that thing less important or impressive than it would otherwise be
But the men's triumph came with an asterisk: The Soviets, three-time gold medalists, had boycotted the Games.— Brad Young
3
: someone or something considered too minor for prominent mention : footnote
At fifty-four, he had followed war from the hills of Italy to the islands of the Pacific to the mountains of Korea, and countless other places already becoming asterisks in the history books.— William Prochnau
asterisk
verb
asterisked;
asterisking;
asterisks
Definition of asterisk (Entry 2 of 2)
: to mark with an asterisk : star
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Other Words from asterisk
Noun
asteriskless
\ -ləs
\
adjective
\
adjective
Examples of asterisk in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web: Noun
One of Goff’s interceptions has a definite asterisk — the Hail Mary at the end of the first half. — Bob Condotta, The Seattle Times, "The Final Word: Bob Condotta reviews what he got right and wrong about Seahawks vs. Rams," 9 Oct. 2018 Players with an asterisk next to their name were re-signed as free agents. — Jon Tayler, SI.com, "While the Cubs and Other NL Central Contenders Make Splashes, the Rest Pack It In," 19 Mar. 2018 Many a page is bottom-loaded with asterisk, dagger and double dagger, and one footnote has two footnotes of its own. — Ben Yagoda, WSJ, "‘Dreyer’s English’ Review: Flossing Your Prose," 24 Jan. 2019 The chart’s source was incorrectly omitted, as was the asterisk denoting that the data were adjusted for inflation. — WSJ, "Corrections & Amplifications," 19 Dec. 2018 The asterisk will be that Garcia one-putted for his octuple-bogey. — Tod Leonard, sandiegouniontribune.com, "13! Defending champ Garcia finds water five times in Masters," 5 Apr. 2018 Some entries, like a loblolly pine planted at the White House, are marked with an asterisk to note that the tree has died. — Mark Thiessen, National Geographic, "Trees that traveled to space now live on Earth. Here's where to find them.," 8 July 2019 There's one asterisk, per Golfweek: But there is a catch. — Charles Curtis, USA TODAY, "The 10 best walk-up songs PGA Tour golfers picked," 25 Apr. 2018 Golden State partisans will insist that Toronto’s title comes with an asterisk, as the team lost far more in this year’s Finals than just the chance to three-peat. — D.r., The Economist, "The Toronto Raptors’ risky bet on Kawhi Leonard pays off with a title," 14 June 2019Recent Examples on the Web: Verb
The game validated all of the improvement that was asterisked by the low level of Ohio State's competition since the loss to Oklahoma. — Mary Kay Cabot, cleveland.com, "Josh Gordon arrived in NY to meet with Roger Goodell about reinstatment," 31 Oct. 2017 The movie made $60 million domestically (another $40 million internationally, asterisked by the fact that this was the era before international box-office dominated performance) on a budget of $66 million. — Borys Kit, The Hollywood Reporter, "'Hellboy' Reboot in the Works With 'Stranger Things' Star David Harbour," 8 May 2017These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'asterisk.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for asterisk
asterisk
noun
English Language Learners Definition of asterisk
: a symbol * that is used in printed text especially to tell someone to read a note that can be found at the bottom of a page
See the full definition for asterisk in the English Language Learners Dictionary
asterisk
noun
as·ter·isk
| \ ˈa-stə-ˌrisk
\
\
Kids Definition of asterisk
: a symbol * used in printing or in writing especially to refer a reader to a note usually at the bottom of a page
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