From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
See also: ✱ ,
ᚕ ,
٭ ,
𐠂 ,
𐠀 ,
★ ,
✶ ,
✴ ,
꙳ ,
ᕯ , and ⁂
Text style
Emoji style
*︎
*️
Text style is forced with ⟨︎⟩ and emoji style with ⟨️⟩.
* (English symbol name asterisk
( alchemy ) Sal ammoniac (6 or 8 point).( astronomy ) star (5 or 6 point).( Internet slang ) Alternative form of * * ( “ encloses an interpretation ” )
I can't see anything! – Hold on a second… * turns the light on
( computing ) Used as a multiplication symbol; × . ( regular expressions ) Used as a wildcard to detect zero or more occurrences of the preceding element . The string ab* c matches “ac”, “abc”, “abbc”, “abbbc”, and so on.
( mathematics ) ( algebra ) Complex or transpose conjugate ; conjugate .( algebra , computer science ) Free monoid or Kleene star .
In the language defined by AB* A, each string starts with an A, ends with a distinct A, and between them has zero or more Bs.
( linear algebra , functional analysis ) Dual space .( meteorology ) Snow (6 point).( particle physics ) Used to designate a resonance. ( IPA ) ( linguistics ) ( descriptive linguistics ) Used before a term (such as a word, phrase, or sentence) to show that it is grammatically incorrect , or in some other way ill-formed . Coordinate term: ** English prepositions come before the associated noun: we say She lives in Rome , not * She lives Rome in .
Roots like * bep- were not allowed in Proto-Indo-European.( historical linguistics ) Used before or after a term to denote that it is only hypothesized and not actually attested . When used before a term: that the term has been reconstructed by a linguist , on the basis of comparative method or by comparing other reconstructed terms, as the plausible ancestor form of an existing , attested term in one or more languages . Coordinate term: ** His theory of the Proto-Slavic * kъniga being ultimately derived from Chinese, via the middle form * kūinig , reflecting ancient routes of cultural influx from the East, has not gained a firm ground in the Slavicist circles in the last century.
When used after a term: that the term is actually attested, but not in its citation form that is being mentioned. PIE * ḱonk- yielded Vedic śaṅk-ate “worries, hesitates”, as well as pre-Germanic * kank- , whence also Gothic hāhan * “to hang”.
When used before a symbol representing a phoneme : that the phoneme is reconstructed on the basis of comparative method. Proto-Germanic had three unvoiced fricatives: * /f/, * /þ/, and * /h/.
When used before a symbol representing a sound value: that the sound value is hypothesized. Proto-Germanic had three unvoiced fricatives, possibly representing * [ɸ], * [θ], and * [x].
( music ) A pointing mark in Anglican chant , which marks a place in the text where an extra breath should be taken, resulting in a brief pause . Coordinate terms: | ' : ⋅ — ‖ † ( multiplication symbol ) : × x · ( antonym(s) of “ multiplication symbol ” ) : : / ÷ ( multiplication symbol ) : + - / % ^ ** * * ( encloses text for emphasis ) ( astronomy ) : V* Cl* ( multiplication symbol ) : ** ( wildcard ) : *.* ( linguistics ) : ** *
Used to censor sections of obscene or profane words. ( Internet slang ) Used to censor non-offensive words to treat them as insulting or profane. wh* te "people"
Used in a dictionary or similar work to indicate a cross-reference to another entry . 2014 The Oxford Dictionary of English Grammar , 2nd edition (in English), Oxford: Oxford University Press , →ISBN page 25 :analysis The process of breaking up *words, * phrases, * clauses, * sentences, * constructions, etc. into their * constituent parts.
Used at the beginning of a footnote , especially if it is the only one on the page, and after a word, phrase, or sentence that this footnote relates to. ( by extension ) Used at the beginning of a clarifying statement or disclaimer , especially if it is the only one on the page. 2022 August 5, “Monkeypox 2022 U.S. Map & Case Count”, in [ United States] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention[1] the original on 2022-08-05 :Total confirmed monkeypox/orthopoxvirus cases: 7,102 * One Florida case is listed here but included in the United Kingdom case counts because the individual was tested while in the UK.
( cricket ) Used to marks a score or statistic that is incomplete , such as the score of a batsman who is (or was) not out . ( chiefly computing ) Uses especially in computing. Used as a wildcard to denote zero or more characters . trans* transgender or transsexual ( Internet ) Used to indicate a field of a form that must be filled out . ( Internet slang ) Used before or after a word to show a correction has been made, chiefly by the same participant. I'm our of time. / * out
( genealogy ) Used before a date to denote that it is a birthdate . Used to indicate emphasis , see * * .Used to form a dinkus , , or asterism , ⁂ .The English names of the mark are asterisk star
In Internet slang, when two or more corrections are made, one may add a * with each correction.
I just got back from Sarcamento / * Sacarmento / ** Sacramento
( in censoring ) : ■ — ( footnote ) : † , ‡ , § , ‖ , ¶ ( as wildcard ) : % ( genealogy ) : ° ( antonym(s) of “ genealogy ” ) : † ✝ / + (French) ( beginning a footnote ) : † ‡ ** ( as wildcard ) : ? ( genealogy ) : ⚭ ✕ , ⚮ , ⚵ (German) ( grammatically incorrect ) : ? *
( text messaging ) Star .
ur a * ! ― You’re a star ! ( text messaging ) Used to replace the sounds /stɑː(ɹ)/ (star) in any word that has this pronunciation or similar. * tstart * fishstarfish * g8stargate ( astronomy ) ＊ : A star (also ✶ ⚹ *
( nonstandard ) Gendersternchen Used to separate multiple gendered inflections in gender-neutral writing. 2020 February 23, Alexander Diehl, “Hamburger Küche: Aal kann – muss aber nicht”, in Die Tageszeitung: taz [2] →ISSN Aber genauer besehen sind sie in Hamburg ja Lutheraner* innen, und Luther war das Leibliche so fern nun wieder nicht. (please add an English translation of this quotation) In speech either expanded (Spieler*in → Spieler oder Spielerin ), or realized with a glottal stop /ˈʃpiːləʁʔɪn/ .
Issues can arise with some forms, compare:
Freunde m pl Freundinnen f pl Freund*innen , where the e of the masculine term is dropped and it's not Freunde*innen Arzt m Ärztin f Ärzt*in , where the umlaut-less A is not presentein Abgeordneter m eine Abgeordnete f ein*e Abgeordnete*r , where the feminine-like ein*e occurs together with the masculine-like Abgeordnete*r : ( as in Freund:innen ; nonstandard, rare ) _ ( as in Freund_innen ; nonstandard ) / ( as in Freund/innen ; nonstandard, proscribed ) / - ( as in Mitarbeiter/-innen ) () ( as in Mitarbeiter(innen) ) (m/w/d) ( as in Mitarbeiter (m/w/d) )
capital I in -in ( “ feminine suffix ” ) ( as in FreundInnen ; nonstandard, proscribed ) "gender-neutral ", but binary only:
