The standard terminal arrival route provides a common way for aircraft to leave the en-route structure and navigate to the destination airport. It is designed to convey critical communications between pilots and ATC in graphical and textual form that simplifies clearance delivery procedures. A STAR looks similar to a standard instrument departure, except that a SID starts on the surface and connects to the en-route structure, whereas a STAR starts at the en-route structure and ends at a fix or navaid.
Chart courtesy of Jeppesen
