starter

1 of 2

noun

start·​er ˈstär-tər 

1

: a person who initiates or sets going: such as

a

: an official who gives the signal to begin a race

b

: one who dispatches vehicles

2

a

: one that engages in a competition

especially : a member of a starting lineup

b

: one that begins to engage in an activity or process

3

: one that causes something to begin operating: such as

a

: a device for starting an engine

especially : an electric motor used to start an internal combustion engine

b

: material containing microorganisms (such as yeast) used to induce a desired fermentation

4

: something that is the beginning of a process, activity, or series

especially : appetizer

see also:

for starters

starter

2 of 2

adjective

: of, relating to, or being an item acquired with the expectation that a more elaborate or sophisticated model will be acquired in the future

a starter home

Examples of starter in a Sentence

Noun

The team is playing only five regular starters.

The car's starter needs to be replaced.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Levis is 5-16 as a starter with 3,899 passing yards, 21 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. — Arkansas Online, 23 Sep. 2026

Batting in the bottom of the third with two outs against Reds starter Brandon Williamson, Acuña swung at a 3-1 cutter and fouled the pitch off his left leg near the shin area. — Chad Bishop, AJC.com, 23 Sep. 2026

Adjective

New York has starter Geno Smith and rookie Cade Kubnik, a fourth-rounder, on its active roster, so Levis would be the third-string quarterback and inactive on game day unless he's promoted from the practice squad. — Arkansas Online, 23 Sep. 2026

Apple's $1,699 starter model nets you a base-level M5 Pro processor (with a 15-core CPU and a 16-core GPU), 24GB of unified memory, and a 512GB solid-state drive. — Joe Osborne, PC Magazine, 21 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1622, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1923, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing starter

• kick-starter
• self-starter
• starter home/house
• starter kit

Rhymes for starter

• arter
• barter
• charter
• darter
• garter
• martyr
• smarter
• tartar

Kids Definition

starter

noun

start·​er

ˈstärt-ər

: someone or something that starts something or causes something else to start

the starter of a motor