touch·down
ˈtəch-ˌdau̇n 
1
: the act of touching a football to the ground behind an opponent's goal
specifically
: the act of scoring six points in American football by being lawfully in possession of the ball on, above, or behind an opponent's goal line when the ball is declared dead
2
: the act or moment of touching down (as with an airplane or spacecraft)
touched down; touching down; touches down
: to reach the ground : land
: to place (the ball in rugby) by hand on the ground on or over an opponent's goal line in scoring a try or behind one's own goal line as a defensive measure
Examples of touchdown in a Sentence
Noun
What was the plane's speed at touchdown?
Verb
the plane will touch down in about 30 minutes
Recent Examples on the Web
Anna Lazarus Caplan, PEOPLE, 16 Dec. 2025
Two meaningless touchdown drives boosted that rating, and his passing yardage from 65 (through three quarters) to 254.
—Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 16 Dec. 2025
Colson Thayer, PEOPLE, 15 Dec. 2025
This week’s gallery captures our favorites out and about, whether they were dressed to the nines in Los Angeles, lighting up London, touching down in Atlanta, or bringing glamour to Mexico and beyond.
—Okla Jones, Essence, 15 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for touchdown
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Noun
Rivers threw for 120 yards with one touchdown and one interception, but the Alabama native couldn’t secure the win for the Colts, who lost starting quarterback Daniel Jones the week before to a season-ending torn Achilles.
—Anna Lazarus Caplan, PEOPLE, 16 Dec. 2025
Two meaningless touchdown drives boosted that rating, and his passing yardage from 65 (through three quarters) to 254.
—Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 16 Dec. 2025
Verb
Footage captured by plane spotter Darwin Claro shows the moment an Aerosucre plane touched down at Ernesto Cortissoz Airport in Barranquilla, Colombia, and began to emit huge sparks.
—Colson Thayer, PEOPLE, 15 Dec. 2025
This week’s gallery captures our favorites out and about, whether they were dressed to the nines in Los Angeles, lighting up London, touching down in Atlanta, or bringing glamour to Mexico and beyond.
—Okla Jones, Essence, 15 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for touchdown
Cite this Entry
“Touchdown.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/touchdown. Accessed 18 Dec. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
touchdown
1 of 2 noun
touch·down
ˈtəch-ˌdau̇n
1
: the act of touching a football to the ground behind an opponent's goal
2
: the act of scoring six points in American football by carrying the ball over the opponent's goal line
3
: the act or moment of touching down (as with an airplane or spacecraft)
touch down
2 of 2 verb(ˈ)təch-ˈdau̇n
: to reach the ground : land
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