For the best answers, search on this site https://shorturl.im/avq2e. Yeah, it's an asterisk. It's used to denote that there is a note relevant to the word it is attached to. It might say something like You have won a million dollars* *you haven't really It's basically an easy way of footnoting without having to format.
Arak is a generic term used for a variety of spirits found in Asia, particularly Indonesia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, and some parts of India.
Aras - a river that rises in northeastern Turkey (near the source of the Euphrates) and flows generally eastward through Armenia to the Caspian Sea; ancient name was Araxes Araxes