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asterisk

Pronunciation: /ˈastərɪsk/

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Definition of asterisk

noun

a symbol (*) used in text as a pointer to an annotation or footnote.

verb

[with object]

mark (a word or piece of text) with an asterisk: (as adjective asterisked)asterisked entries

Origin:

late Middle English: via late Latin from Greek asteriskos 'small star', diminutive of astēr

Asterisk is pronounced with an -isk sound at the end, to match the spelling, and not as though it were spelled -ix. Asterix is a character in a cartoon strip.

Spelling help

The ending of asterisk should be spelled -isk.

asterisk in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of asterisk in the US English dictionary

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