Meaning & use
starstruck
Last updated
UK/ˈstɑːstrʌk/
US/ˈstɑrstrʌk/
Meaning
adjectivecomparableinformal
Too amazed and excited to act normally because you are meeting or seeing a famous person.
Grammar: Used after a linking verb or before a noun: She was starstruck, or a starstruck fan.
Patterns
- be starstruck
- feel starstruck
I was too starstruck to ask for her autograph.
The starstruck fans screamed when the band arrived.
He felt starstruck standing next to his hero.
Common combinations
- completely starstruck
- The kids were completely starstruck by the astronaut.
- feel starstruck
- I always feel starstruck at film festivals.
- starstruck fan
- A starstruck fan waited outside the hotel.
- left starstruck
- The interview left her starstruck.
- a little starstruck
- He seemed a little starstruck at the party.
Synonyms and how they differ
- awestruck
- Awestruck is wider and can describe wonder at nature or grandeur, not just a celebrity.
- dazzled
- Dazzled stresses being impressed by brilliance, but it does not need a famous person.
- tongue-tied
- Tongue-tied only describes being unable to speak, whatever the cause.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: starstruck or starstruck?
starstruck vs starstruck
Some writers split it into star-struck; both are used, but the single word is more common.
Practice
Why might a teenager be starstruck at a concert?
Choose one answer.
Starstruck means overwhelmed at meeting or seeing a famous person. Boredom, cold and a lost ticket do not fit.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “starstruck”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.
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