as in activated
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 touched off
That touched off a conservative firestorm online, even though Wembanyama is French, meaning his country’s anthem wasn’t being played.
—
Michelle L. Price, Fortune, 6 June 2026
The race has touched off negative campaign advertisements between Feenstra and leading opponent and businessman Zach Lahn.
—Cooper Worth, Des Moines Register, 2 June 2026
In 1971, Nixon replaced Martin with a distinguished economist, Arthur Burns, whose policies touched off the great inflation.
—Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 31 May 2026
McBride, the Commodores, Morris Day & the Time and Young MC have all either withdrawn or publicly denied participation after the lineup reveal touched off immediate backlash.
—Spin Staff, SPIN, 29 May 2026
The boom in the market was touched off by the overnight success of OpenAI’s ChatGPT, which showed that chatbots could answer users’ questions in conversational fashion, threatening to make Google’s list of links to websites obsolete.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 20 May 2026
The plea deals and Johnson’s comments have touched off debates over Missouri’s gun laws.
—Nathan Pilling, Kansas City Star, 11 May 2026
In perhaps the most profound of the recent battles, the Central Florida Expressway Authority touched off an angry revolt by pushing a toll-road extension through a piece of the Split Oak Forest.
—Stephen Hudak, The Orlando Sentinel, 4 May 2026
His death at age 80 has touched off a scramble among candidates seeking to fill the remainder of his term and take his seat in Congress for a full term beginning next year.
—Greg Bluestein, AJC.com, 2 May 2026
Michelle L. Price, Fortune, 6 June 2026
The race has touched off negative campaign advertisements between Feenstra and leading opponent and businessman Zach Lahn.
—Cooper Worth, Des Moines Register, 2 June 2026
In 1971, Nixon replaced Martin with a distinguished economist, Arthur Burns, whose policies touched off the great inflation.
—Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 31 May 2026
McBride, the Commodores, Morris Day & the Time and Young MC have all either withdrawn or publicly denied participation after the lineup reveal touched off immediate backlash.
—Spin Staff, SPIN, 29 May 2026
The boom in the market was touched off by the overnight success of OpenAI’s ChatGPT, which showed that chatbots could answer users’ questions in conversational fashion, threatening to make Google’s list of links to websites obsolete.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 20 May 2026
The plea deals and Johnson’s comments have touched off debates over Missouri’s gun laws.
—Nathan Pilling, Kansas City Star, 11 May 2026
In perhaps the most profound of the recent battles, the Central Florida Expressway Authority touched off an angry revolt by pushing a toll-road extension through a piece of the Split Oak Forest.
—Stephen Hudak, The Orlando Sentinel, 4 May 2026
His death at age 80 has touched off a scramble among candidates seeking to fill the remainder of his term and take his seat in Congress for a full term beginning next year.
—Greg Bluestein, AJC.com, 2 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for touched off
Verb
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But the aircraft’s ditch switch, designed to reduce flooding during a water landing, was widely reported as not being activated, almost certainly because the crew had only seconds to prioritize what mattered most.—
Tim Burns,
Fortune,
9 June 2026
-
Further analysis indicated that removing certain molecules reshaped the tumor microenvironment and activated several anti-tumor immune responses.—
Ashley Mackin Solomon,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
9 June 2026
Verb
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Shots fired near the Colorado-Wyoming border on Monday triggered a massive response from law enforcement agencies in both states after a Wyoming deputy was injured, sheriff’s officials said.—
Lauren Penington,
Denver Post,
9 June 2026
-
Multiple buildings collapsed in General Santos City, a major port on the populous island of Mindanao, and the quake also triggered deadly landslides and a 3-foot tsunami that hit neighboring islands’ coasts.—
Rafi Schwartz,
TheWeek,
9 June 2026
Verb
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Who made the decision, however, has sparked accusations by both New York mayor Zohran Mamdani and Knicks owner James Dolan.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
11 June 2026
-
The play sparked outrage inside the arena and across social media.—
Alejandro Avila OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
11 June 2026
Verb
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Even minor sparks or drifting embers can incite nearby foliage or grass, setting off a rapidly spreading fire.—
Bay Area Weather Report,
Mercury News,
9 June 2026
-
Instead, the member of the fire department manually set off the sirens on his own, which ran for three minutes before shutting down.—
Shelly Bradbury,
Denver Post,
9 June 2026
Verb
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By 1986, this legal jeopardy drove all but one vaccine manufacturer out of the market, with that last survivor poised to abandon vaccines in the US as well.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
11 June 2026
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Evidence shows planned meeting Prosecutors say cell phone geolocation and call records showed Campbell left his home in Anson and drove about 30 minutes to an Abilene hotel to meet the minors.—
Doug Myers,
CBS News,
11 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Touched off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/touched%20off. Accessed 12 Jun. 2026.
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