as in to trigger
to cause to function
his obscene comment touched off a heated debate about the need for censorship on live broadcasts
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Recent Examples of touch off
The sprint to build these sprawling facilities, which hold racks of humming servers powered by expensive processors, has touched off an unprecedented level of borrowing, pinched energy supplies and brought developers into conflict with communities worried about rising power and water costs.
—
Bloomberg Wire, Dallas Morning News, 6 Feb. 2026
Meanwhile, history shows that major Bitcoin crashes have typically been touched off by multiple factors, not a single event.
—Jeff John Roberts, Fortune, 6 Feb. 2026
Both threats touched off fury in Europe, where governments had spent most of the past year making concessions to Trump on both military spending and tariffs.
—Doyle McManus, Los Angeles Times, 26 Jan. 2026
Akbarin is a supporter of Mir Hossein Mousavi, the former prime minister of the Islamic Republic whose reformist candidacy for the presidency touched off the 2009 Green Movement.
—Arash Azizi, The Atlantic, 20 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for touch off
Bloomberg Wire, Dallas Morning News, 6 Feb. 2026
Meanwhile, history shows that major Bitcoin crashes have typically been touched off by multiple factors, not a single event.
—Jeff John Roberts, Fortune, 6 Feb. 2026
Both threats touched off fury in Europe, where governments had spent most of the past year making concessions to Trump on both military spending and tariffs.
—Doyle McManus, Los Angeles Times, 26 Jan. 2026
Akbarin is a supporter of Mir Hossein Mousavi, the former prime minister of the Islamic Republic whose reformist candidacy for the presidency touched off the 2009 Green Movement.
—Arash Azizi, The Atlantic, 20 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for touch off
Recent Examples of Synonyms for touch off
Verb
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Thermal runaway is a self-sustaining chain reaction where a little bit of pressure or heat starts producing even more heat, leading to a rapid rise in temperature that can trigger deadly fires or explosions.—
Jan Wagner,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
21 Feb. 2026
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Some financial advisors question whether Trump account gifts meet that criteria, which could trigger gift tax return filing requirements.—
Jessica Dickler,Kate Dore, CFP®, EA,
CNBC,
21 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The garage sprinkler system had activated, helping control the fire prior to the department’s arrival, according to officials.—
Aurora Beacon-News,
Chicago Tribune,
16 Feb. 2026
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Ensure your vehicle is visible to others by using low-beam headlights, which also activate your taillights.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
16 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Another chart provides a clue to the massive error in revenue projections by Newsom’s budget staff in 2022 which sparked the spending surge.—
Dan Walters,
Mercury News,
17 Feb. 2026
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The first meeting, held at a Chinese restaurant in Lima on December 26, sparked controversy after images showed the president entering the establishment wearing a hood.—
CNN staff,
CNN Money,
17 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Molecular motion drives repair In earlier animal studies, a single injection 24 hours after severe injury enabled mice to regain the ability to walk within weeks.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
17 Feb. 2026
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The San Francisco Department of Emergency Management advised the public to secure loose outdoor items, watch for falling branches, and use caution while driving or walking.—
Doyle Rice,
USA Today,
17 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Jackson visited Minneapolis in 2021 to support protesters awaiting the verdict in the trial of Derek Chauvin, the former police officer who was convicted days later of killing George Floyd in an incident that set off national protests and violence.—
Trevor Hughes,
USA Today,
17 Feb. 2026
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But Greenland set off alarm bells for another reason.—
Thomas Robertson,
Fortune,
17 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Jordan Sousa dazzled with six goals and three assists, pairing with Timmy O’Malley (hat trick, three assists) to power Hudson to an 11-0 Mid-Wach win over Gardner.—
Tyler McManus,
Boston Herald,
17 Feb. 2026
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London served as the central intelligence hub, responsible for developing the AI systems and Vision-Language-Action (VLA) frameworks that power the robot’s cognition.—
Atharva Gosavi,
Interesting Engineering,
16 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Montage founder, Alan Fuerstman, personally moves into every new property for its first month of operations to ensure the brand’s signature five-star service is up to snuff.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
20 Feb. 2026
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The players could feel the former United and Wales winger starting to move up the gears.—
Andy Mitten,
New York Times,
20 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Touch off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/touch%20off. Accessed 23 Feb. 2026.
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