Definition of torchnext
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

Relevance

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
Ancient viewers would have relied on beeswax and tallow candles, incense burners and torches. — Jacqueline Ortoleva, Scientific American, 3 Oct. 2026 And even though Kurt retired from racing after being seriously injured in a hard crash in the summer of 2022, Kyle still carried the torch in their home city, ensuring the connection remained strong. — Jordan Bianchi, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2026
Verb
At least one car was torched in ​Strasbourg in ⁠the east and riot police clashed with youths in Toulouse in the southwest. — Reuters, NBC news, 2 Oct. 2026 The Eagles just got torched by Case Keenum, and yet Chad champions their upset of the Rams. — J.j. Bailey, New York Times, 1 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for torch
Recent Examples of Synonyms for torch
Noun
  • The most finicky part of the setup was actually inserting the battery for the igniter.
    — Noah Kaufman, Architectural Digest, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Engine starters, igniter plugs, launch pads, and controllers are all things that can cost you money.
    — Grace Dean, Space.com, 16 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • Neurons are closer to Formula One race cars than to family sedans, burning fuel at a furious rate and threatening to blow up at any moment.
    — Rowan Jacobsen, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Wall Street analysts are trying to discern whether Big Tech will continue to burn cash or not.
    — John Towfighi, CNN Money, 20 Oct. 2026
Noun
  • On Tuesday, arsonists set ablaze at least three vehicles, including a taxi and a public bus, and armed men threatened merchants in broad daylight, plunging the city into fear.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 23 Sep. 2026
  • An arsonist was caught on video setting fire inside an apartment building in Detroit.
    — Karma Sabbah, CBS News, 9 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • The first practical transformer was switched on about 15 miles down the road, in 1886, when William Stanley lit stores and offices lining Great Barrington’s Main Street.
    — Alex Pasternack, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Taking a shower, changing your clothes or lighting a candle after work can also create a transition.
    — Melody Wilding, Contributor, CNBC, 20 Oct. 2026
Noun
  • An arson fire destroys the 43-year-old Globe Theatre on March 8 (the arsonist was never caught, but a firebug had set several blazes in the park that winter).
    — Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Oct. 2025
  • 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
Verb
  • Martin Zummach, an attorney who represents the officer who fired the shot that killed Kohen, says the attorney general's findings cleared his client of criminal wrongdoing.
    — SOPHIE BATES, Arkansas Online, 20 Oct. 2026
  • As neurons fire furiously over the course of the day, ROS can accumulate.
    — Rowan Jacobsen, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • In modern nuclear weapons, conventional explosives set off a fission reaction—the splitting of big atoms—whose intensity then ignites a fusion reaction that combines light atoms.
    — Sarah Scoles, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026
  • When the tin fog is ignited, the explosion produces a plasma fifty times hotter than the surface of the sun.
    — Gideon Lewis-Kraus, New Yorker, 19 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • This complicates things for Teagan, who has begun to kindle something with Cam.
    — Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 10 Sep. 2026
  • Now that fall is on the horizon, hope has been kindled for abundant rainfall.
    — Robert Klose, Christian Science Monitor, 4 Sep. 2026

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Torch.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/torch. Accessed 23 Oct. 2026.

More from Merriam-Webster on torch

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster