Use
Corn starch is used as a thickening agent in soups and liquid-based foods, such as sauces, gravies and custards by mixing it with a cold liquid to form a paste or slurry. It is sometimes preferred over flour because it forms a translucent mixture, rather than an opaque one. As the starch is heated, the molecular chains unravel, allowing them to collide with other starch chains to form a mesh, thickening the liquid (Starch gelatinization).
It is usually included as an anticaking agent in powdered sugar (10X or confectioner's sugar). Baby powder often uses cornstarch.
Corn starch when mixed with a fluid can make a non-Newtonian fluid, e.g. adding water makes Oobleck and adding oil makes an Electrorheological fluid.
A common substitute is arrowroot, which replaces corn starch on a 1:1 ratio.
Read more about this topic: Corn Starch
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