*

See also: ✱, ᚕ, ٭, 𐠂, 𐠀, ★, ✶, ✴, ꙳, ᕯ, and ⁂

* U+002A, * ASTERISK ← ) [U+0029] Basic Latin + → [U+002B]

Character variations

✱ U+2731, ✱ HEAVY ASTERISK ← ✰ [U+2730] Dingbats ✲ → [U+2732]

✲ U+2732, ✲ OPEN CENTRE ASTERISK ← ✱ [U+2731] Dingbats ✳ → [U+2733]

✻ U+273B, ✻ TEARDROP-SPOKED ASTERISK ← ✺ [U+273A] Dingbats ✼ → [U+273C]

✼ U+273C, ✼ OPEN CENTRE TEARDROP-SPOKED ASTERISK ← ✻ [U+273B] Dingbats ✽ → [U+273D]

✽ U+273D, ✽ HEAVY TEARDROP-SPOKED ASTERISK ← ✼ [U+273C] Dingbats ✾ → [U+273E]

❉ U+2749, ❉ BALLOON-SPOKED ASTERISK ← ❈ [U+2748] Dingbats ❊ → [U+274A]

✢ U+2722, ✢ FOUR TEARDROP-SPOKED ASTERISK ← ✡ [U+2721] Dingbats ✣ → [U+2723]

✣ U+2723, ✣ FOUR BALLOON-SPOKED ASTERISK ← ✢ [U+2722] Dingbats ✤ → [U+2724]

✤ U+2724, ✤ HEAVY FOUR BALLOON-SPOKED ASTERISK ← ✣ [U+2723] Dingbats ✥ → [U+2725]

✥ U+2725, ✥ FOUR CLUB-SPOKED ASTERISK ← ✤ [U+2724] Dingbats ✦ → [U+2726]

❃ U+2743, ❃ HEAVY TEARDROP-SPOKED PINWHEEL ASTERISK ← ❂ [U+2742] Dingbats ❄ → [U+2744]

❊ U+274A, ❊ EIGHT TEARDROP-SPOKED PROPELLER ASTERISK ← ❉ [U+2749] Dingbats ❋ → [U+274B]

❋ U+274B, ❋ HEAVY EIGHT TEARDROP-SPOKED PROPELLER ASTERISK ← ❊ [U+274A] Dingbats ❌ → [U+274C]

✺ U+273A, ✺ SIXTEEN POINTED ASTERISK ← ✹ [U+2739] Dingbats ✻ → [U+273B]

＊ U+FF0A, ＊ FULLWIDTH ASTERISK ← ） [U+FF09] Halfwidth and Fullwidth Forms ＋ → [U+FF0B]

﹡ U+FE61, ﹡ SMALL ASTERISK ← ﹠ [U+FE60] Small Form Variants ﹢ → [U+FE62]

Translingual

Symbol

* (English symbol name asterisk)

1. (alchemy) Sal ammoniac (6 or 8 point).
2. (astronomy) A star (5 or 6 point).
3. (Internet slang) Alternative form of * * (“encloses an interpretation”)

   I can't see anything! – Hold on a second… *turns the light on

4. (computing) Used as a multiplication symbol; ×.
5. (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.

6. (mathematics)
   1. (algebra) Complex or transpose conjugate; conjugate.
   2. (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.

   3. (linear algebra, functional analysis) Dual space.
7. (meteorology) Snow (6 point).
8. (particle physics) Used to designate a resonance.
9. (IPA) a reserved symbol with no set meaning, that needs to be defined by the transcriber. May be used as a letter or as a diacritic.
10. (linguistics)
    1. (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.

    2. (historical linguistics) Used before or after a term to denote that it is only hypothesized and not actually attested.
       1. 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: **

          It is posited that Proto-Indo-European *sneygʷʰos is the etymon of both Latin nix and English snow.

          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.

       2. 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”.

       3. 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/.

       4. 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].

Synonyms

• (multiplication symbol): ×, x, ·

Antonyms

• (antonym(s) of "multiplication symbol"): :, /, ÷

Coordinate terms

• (multiplication symbol): +, -, /, %, ^, **

Derived terms

• * * (encloses text for emphasis)
• (astronomy): V*, Cl*
• (multiplication symbol): **
• (wildcard): *.*
• (linguistics): **

Punctuation mark

*

1. Used to censor sections of obscene or profane words.

   F**k You!

   1. (Internet slang) Used to censor non-offensive words to treat them as insulting or profane.

      T*rks, K*rds

      wh*te "people"

2. 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.

3. 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.
4. (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], archived from 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.

5. (cricket) Used to marks a score or statistic that is incomplete, such as the score of a batsman who is (or was) not out.
6. (chiefly computing) Uses especially in computing.
   1. Used as a wildcard to denote zero or more characters.

      trans* (transgender or transsexual)

   2. (Internet) Used to indicate a field of a form that must be filled out.
   3. (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

7. (genealogy) Used before a date to denote that it is a birthdate.
8. Used to indicate emphasis, see * *.
9. Used to form a dinkus, * * *, or asterism, ⁂.

Usage notes

• The English names of the mark are asterisk and 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

Synonyms

• (in censoring): ■, —
• (footnote): †, ‡, §, ‖, ¶
• (as wildcard): %
• (genealogy): °

Antonyms

• (antonym(s) of "genealogy"): † / ✝ / + (French)

Coordinate terms

• (beginning a footnote): †, ‡, **, [numbers]
• (as wildcard): ?
• (genealogy): ⚭ / ✕, ⚮, ⚵ (German)
• (grammatically incorrect): ?

English

Symbol

*

1. (text messaging) star

   ur a *! ― You're a star!

2. (text messaging) Used to replace the sounds /stɑː(ɹ)/ (star) in any word that has this pronunciation or similar.

   *t ― start

   *fish ― starfish

   *g8 ― stargate

3. (astronomy) ＊: a star (also ✶ or ⚹)

German

Symbol

*

1. (nonstandard) the Gendersternchen; Used to separate multiple gendered inflections in gender-neutral writing.

   Freund*innen; ein*e Beamt*er*in; Witwe*r

   friends (of any gender); an officer (of any gender); widower (of any gender)

   • 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)

Usage notes

• 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 present
  • ein Abgeordneter m, eine Abgeordnete f → ein*e Abgeordnete*r, where the feminine-like ein*e occurs together with the masculine-like Abgeordnete*r

Synonyms

• : (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:

• und (as in Freunde und Freundinnen)
• männlich und weiblich (as in männliche und weibliche Freunde)
• beiderlei Geschlechts (as in Freunde beiderlei Geschlechts)
• (m/w) (as in Freund (m/w))