lodestar

noun

ˈlōd-ˌstär How to pronounce lodestar (audio)
variants also loadstar
Definition of lodestarnext
as in compass
a guiding or motivating purpose or principle a society seemingly with unbridled greed as its only lodestar

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of lodestar Like many other states, Washington law provides that the reasonableness of an attorney fee award should be determined by something called the lodestar method. — Jay Adkisson, Forbes.com, 25 Mar. 2026 Over succeeding decades, both Sellars and Salonen have been Salzburg Festival lodestars. — Classical Music Critic, Los Angeles Times, 20 Mar. 2026 The event, which is celebrating its twentieth anniversary this year, is a lodestar of the region’s burgeoning arts scene. — News Desk, Artforum, 19 Mar. 2026 Pop The rapper turned pop star Lizzo felt like a lodestar of the twenty-tens Zeitgeist. — Sheldon Pearce, New Yorker, 20 Feb. 2026 See All Example Sentences for lodestar
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lodestar
  1. compass
  2. direction
Noun
  • Kiyosaki tells me that his father gave him his heart, as well as a great social compass.
    — Christopher Cox, Vanity Fair, 26 Aug. 2026
  • One direction changes with the prevailing winds instead of being anchored by an internal compass.
    — Catherine Bell, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of compass
Noun
  • The technology was also tested against deceptive behaviour, an in a different scenario, fishing boats appeared to retreat while vessels from another direction accelerated toward the coastguard ship.
    — Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 30 Aug. 2026
  • Despite years passing and their lives moving in different directions, the four come together and remember how beautiful and essential their friendship was and is.
    — Kara Nesvig, Parents, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of direction

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Cite this Entry

“Lodestar.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lodestar. Accessed 2 Sep. 2026.

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