as in hot button
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of third rail
As previously reported by The News, more than 3,000 riders were stranded in December when the State St. power transformer exploded under Downtown Brooklyn, cutting power to the third rail of the F and the G lines.
—
Evan Simko-Bednarski, New York Daily News, 28 Jan. 2025
In political discourse, DEI became the ultimate third rail.
—Sheilla Mamona, refinery29.com, 18 Feb. 2025
For decades, transfer remained the third rail of Israeli politics - so extreme, so indefensible, that it could not be spoken of in polite company.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 5 Feb. 2025
The Times reported that if Lynskey or his clothes had touched the third rail, which runs outside the track and electrifies the subway, chances are he would've been electrocuted.
—Becca Longmire, People.com, 4 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for third rail
Evan Simko-Bednarski, New York Daily News, 28 Jan. 2025
In political discourse, DEI became the ultimate third rail.
—Sheilla Mamona, refinery29.com, 18 Feb. 2025
For decades, transfer remained the third rail of Israeli politics - so extreme, so indefensible, that it could not be spoken of in polite company.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 5 Feb. 2025
The Times reported that if Lynskey or his clothes had touched the third rail, which runs outside the track and electrifies the subway, chances are he would've been electrocuted.
—Becca Longmire, People.com, 4 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for third rail
Recent Examples of Synonyms for third rail
Noun
-
Inflation remains a hot button issue in the U.S. despite its cooling from 2021 highs.—
Gary Drenik,
Forbes.com,
2 Apr. 2025
-
Hitting hot button issues with fresh insight and hysterical precision, Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele revealed themselves to be two of the best comedy writers in the business, leading to a Peabody Award, two Emmy Awards, and millions of fans.—
Brian Tallerico,
Vulture,
18 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
Mendoza said those problems include the ticking time bomb that is the city budget’s structural deficit and how that could spell an adverse effect on Pritzker and the rest of state government.—
Alice Yin,
Chicago Tribune,
28 Mar. 2025
-
With malicious bots continuously scanning the internet for open endpoints, an unprotected app is a ticking time bomb.—
Gerry Gebel,
Forbes.com,
27 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
The switcheroo went off like a powder keg at City Hall, with officials rushing toward damage control.—
Shomik Mukherjee,
Mercury News,
1 Apr. 2025
-
But internal conflict between the brash younger generation and the old-school leadership threatens to set a match to this powder keg, which will sweep the Westies into the FBI’s ever-deepening investigation into the Italian mafia.—
Nellie Andreeva,
Deadline,
18 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
As Trump, in collaboration with Elon Musk, has embarked on efforts to decimate the federal government, public political gatherings—in particular, appearances by Republicans in their home districts—have become flash points for an angry citizenry.—
Emily Witt,
The New Yorker,
25 Mar. 2025
-
Maritime flash points Besides Taiwan, the U.S. and China remain fundamentally at odds over the South China Sea, which Beijing claims almost entirely as its own despite an opposing 2016 international court ruling.—
Brad Dress,
The Hill,
7 Jan. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Third rail.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/third%20rail. Accessed 9 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share