touch off
verb
touched off; touching off; touches off
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
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
Florida establishing new single-year execution record The death warrant likely will touch off legal battles about whether Jones should be executed.
—Miami Herald, 29 Aug. 2025
Trump’s move is likely to touch off an extensive legal battle that will probably go to the Supreme Court and could disrupt financial markets.
—Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 26 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for touch off
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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
Florida establishing new single-year execution record The death warrant likely will touch off legal battles about whether Jones should be executed.
—Miami Herald, 29 Aug. 2025
Trump’s move is likely to touch off an extensive legal battle that will probably go to the Supreme Court and could disrupt financial markets.
—Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 26 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for touch off
Cite this Entry
“Touch off.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/touch%20off. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
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