Star with rodent initially enjoying party (9)

I believe the answer is:

celebrate

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'party' is the definition.
(I know that party is a kind of celebrate)

'star with rodent initially enjoying' is the wordplay.
'star with' becomes 'celeb' (I've seen this before. I am not sure about the 'with' bit.).
'rodent' becomes 'rat' (rat is a kind of rodent).
'initially' suggests taking the first letters.
The initial letter of 'enjoying' is 'e'.
'celeb'+'rat'+'e'='CELEBRATE'

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for celebrate that I've seen before include "Perform with rites and ceremonies" , "Rejoice or commemorate" , "Rejoice - honour - praise" , "Praise - whoop it up - honour" , "enjoy victory" .)

I've seen this clue in The Daily Express.

Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.