Phrase guide

magic asterisk

noun · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

an unspecified future budget cut, especially an imaginary cut.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: idiomatic

Topics: economics, government, politics, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Coined by Howard Henry Baker Jr., from the Reagan administration's use in 1981 of asterisks as placeholders for cuts yet to be decided in government spending.