ASTERISK

ASTERISK. A star-shaped mark (*), used in writing and printing: (1) To indicate a reference or annotation, especially a first footnote, in which case it follows the word, phrase, or sentence being marked in a text, and precedes the footnote or reference. (2) To mark a cross-reference in an encyclopedia or similar work: *Darwin or *Darwin, meaning ‘Darwin (see entry under that name)’. (3) To mark the omission of a letter, especially in four-letter words: f**k for fuck. (4) In philology, to mark a reconstructed form not (yet) attested in a text or inscription: for example, the hypothetical Latin word *ultraticum proposed as the source of English outrage and Italian ultraggio. (5) In linguistics, to mark a word, phrase, sentence, or utterance as unacceptable for grammatical, semantic, or other reasons: for example, *I went for to do it discounted as a sentence of standard English. See ELLIPSIS.