torch 1 of 2

as in igniter
a person who deliberately and unlawfully sets fire to a building or other property several suspicious fires in the past few months have probably been set by the same torch

Synonyms & Similar Words

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torch

2 of 2

verb

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 torch
Noun
The Saint-Gaudens design of Lady Liberty with torch and olive branch is arguably the most iconic US coinage ever struck, with the eagle on the reverse a masterstroke of neoclassical style. Clem Chambers, Forbes.com, 26 Aug. 2025 As John Cena prepares for retirement from professional wrestling, the Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes seemingly carries the torch as the company's top star. Matthew Couden, MSNBC Newsweek, 26 Aug. 2025
Verb
The Bear Gulch Fire on the peninsula has already torched almost 9,000 acres in the Olympic National Forest. Cnn.com Wire Service, Mercury News, 29 Aug. 2025 On a world that was just ground to flour by ice sheets, and then torched by absurd levels of carbon dioxide, this was a rock-weathering fever dream. Peter Brannen august 28, Literary Hub, 28 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for torch
Recent Examples of Synonyms for torch
Noun
  • Part of the reason the Brewers had more opportunities was that their defenders killed one potential rally igniter after another.
    Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 23 Aug. 2025
Verb
  • The wildfire has been burning on private land.
    CA WILDFIRE BOT, Sacbee.com, 8 Sep. 2025
  • The Jets also failed twice to convert on two-point conversions, once in the first half (Braelon Allen was stuffed) and again in the fourth quarter — after needlessly burning a timeout, Fields forced a throw to Wilson, surrounded by three defensive backs, in the back right corner of the end zone.
    Zack Rosenblatt, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • Examples of attacks include everything from graffiti and destruction of statues to arsonists destroying entire churches and assailants attacking churchgoers with deadly weapons.
    Robert Schmad, The Washington Examiner, 30 Aug. 2025
  • Ansfield brings this expansive vision to the Bronx, following the trail from the arsonists who did the torching to the landlords who ordered it, the policymakers who enabled it, the financiers who encouraged it, and the insurers who paid for it.
    Daniel Immerwahr, New Yorker, 18 Aug. 2025
Verb
  • Another challenge was lighting, to shoot everything in a visually coherent and realistic manner amid all the smoke.
    Tomris Laffly, Time, 6 Sep. 2025
  • James appears to be walking toward the viewer with a burning flame lit behind him.
    Michael Nied, PEOPLE, 5 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • In video released by police, the firebug could be seen setting fire to a small pile of trash next to the head of a sleeping passenger stretched out on the seat.
    Elizabeth Keogh, New York Daily News, 12 Feb. 2025
  • Two men have been charged with felony arson in Los Angeles in unrelated cases as authorities combat firebugs, looters and multiple raging blazes in Southern California.
    Michael Ruiz, Fox News, 15 Jan. 2025
Verb
  • As dusk falls, camel caravans fade into dunes, and stars ignite above the oasis palms.
    Lewis Nunn, Forbes.com, 24 Aug. 2025
  • This homecoming, driven by Stefan’s urge to complete a film about his mother as well as an attempt to make amends by rescuing a stray dog, will ignite an introspective journey.
    Leo Barraclough, Variety, 23 Aug. 2025
Verb
  • As the boys ran away down the street, the man raised the pistol again and fired at them, striking Guzman in the back.
    Jeanine Santucci, USA Today, 4 Sep. 2025
  • The next shot came from California Governor Gavin Newsom, who fired back with a threat to rewrite his state's congressional map to add five Democratic seats.
    Tom Rogers, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Even minor parks or embers might be carried into leaves or grass, kindling a fire that can swiftly expand.
    CA Weather Bot, Sacbee.com, 3 Sep. 2025
  • The star of Big Little Lies confessed her new film, Caught Stealing, kindles a powerful yearning for some aspects of the era.
    Ryan Coleman, EW.com, 1 Sep. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Torch.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/torch. Accessed 8 Sep. 2025.

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