hot button
noun
: an emotional and usually controversial issue or concern that triggers immediate intense reaction
Examples of hot button in a Sentence
The film is considered very controversial for all the hot buttons it pushes.
Recent Examples on the Web
But it's always meant to get a reaction, whether from allies or critics, especially on hot button topics such as immigration and crime.
—
Phillip M. Bailey, USA TODAY, 31 Mar. 2024
Nonetheless Chang isn’t oblivious to the fact immigration remains a hot button issue.
—Paolo Confino, Fortune, 22 Mar. 2024
In the latest episode of the Odd Lots podcast, Trevor Bales — a sixth generation farmer from Buckeye, Arizona — breaks down the complexities of farming alfalfa and other crops in a place where water distribution is becoming an increasingly hot button issue.
—Isabel Webb Carey, Bloomberg.com, 14 July 2023
Following the report, TikTok once again became a hot button issue in the nation’s capital.
—Catherine Thorbecke, CNN, 22 Mar. 2023
Its image of a Paris courtesan, with tungsten-white skin and a level gaze, stretched out on her bed and approached by a Black female attendant bearing flowers, punched many a hot button — social, aesthetic and ethical — in French bourgeois culture.
—Holland Cotter, New York Times, 21 Sep. 2023
The submissions from here focus on the universal hot button subject of climate change.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 12 Dec. 2023
Steve Sarkisian discovered what a hot button issue the school song can be in his second season at Texas.
—Dallas News, 24 Oct. 2022
Advertisement For years, immigration has been one of the hottest of political hot buttons.
—David Lauter, Los Angeles Times, 19 Sep. 2023
Phillip M. Bailey, USA TODAY, 31 Mar. 2024
Nonetheless Chang isn’t oblivious to the fact immigration remains a hot button issue.
—Paolo Confino, Fortune, 22 Mar. 2024
In the latest episode of the Odd Lots podcast, Trevor Bales — a sixth generation farmer from Buckeye, Arizona — breaks down the complexities of farming alfalfa and other crops in a place where water distribution is becoming an increasingly hot button issue.
—Isabel Webb Carey, Bloomberg.com, 14 July 2023
Following the report, TikTok once again became a hot button issue in the nation’s capital.
—Catherine Thorbecke, CNN, 22 Mar. 2023
Its image of a Paris courtesan, with tungsten-white skin and a level gaze, stretched out on her bed and approached by a Black female attendant bearing flowers, punched many a hot button — social, aesthetic and ethical — in French bourgeois culture.
—Holland Cotter, New York Times, 21 Sep. 2023
The submissions from here focus on the universal hot button subject of climate change.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 12 Dec. 2023
Steve Sarkisian discovered what a hot button issue the school song can be in his second season at Texas.
—Dallas News, 24 Oct. 2022
Advertisement For years, immigration has been one of the hottest of political hot buttons.
—David Lauter, Los Angeles Times, 19 Sep. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'hot button.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1966, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near hot button
Cite this Entry
“Hot button.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hot%20button. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
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