touch off

verb

touched off; touching off; touches off

transitive verb

1
a
: to provoke or initiate with sudden intensity
the verdict touched off local riots
b
: to cause to explode by or as if by touching with fire
2
: to describe or characterize with precision

Examples of touch off in a Sentence

his obscene comment touched off a heated debate about the need for censorship on live broadcasts
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Williams said, touching off laughter. Tom Murphy, Arkansas Online, 12 Sep. 2025 An investigation by The Arizona Republic, part of the USA TODAY Network, found that the fire was allowed to burn for seven days after a July 4 lightning strike touched off the blaze – even as fuel and weather conditions repeatedly reached the brink of critical thresholds for fire risk. Rey Covarrubias Jr, USA Today, 9 Sep. 2025 Then OpenAI’s ChatGPT, released only a few weeks before Mercor’s founding, touched off a race among the tech giants to train the most advanced AI models. Richard Nieva, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025 The explosions and fire touched off July 1 on a rural compound near County Roads 23 and 86A, where two fireworks companies — Devastating Pyrotechnics and BlackStar Fireworks — were storing materials. Joe Rubin, Sacbee.com, 29 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for touch off

Word History

First Known Use

1694, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Time Traveler
The first known use of touch off was in 1694

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Touch off.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/touch%20off. Accessed 12 Sep. 2025.

Kids Definition

touch off

verb
: to start by or as if by touching with fire
the announcement touched off riots
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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