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
The prospect of a cooling economy alongside high inflation, touched off by an oil shock, has many analysts comparing the current period to the 1970s.
—
Bart Jansen, USA Today, 28 Mar. 2026
But a buying frenzy touched off by the pandemic in 2020 depleted the inventory of homes for sale across the Hartford region and throughout much of Connecticut.
—Kenneth R. Gosselin, Hartford Courant, 22 Mar. 2026
Graves’ shot touched off a celebration on the Santa Clara bench.
—Jerry McDonald, Mercury News, 20 Mar. 2026
The boat, left there on shore, had touched off a prompt alarm.
—Elwyn "bud" Myers, Outdoor Life, 11 Mar. 2026
Your case touched off a global movement.
—Maer Roshan, HollywoodReporter, 10 Mar. 2026
In the immediate aftermath of the finale versus Canada, the nationwide celebration also touched off some controversy of its own.
—Jess Myers, Twin Cities, 1 Mar. 2026
During the war, Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic ordered the ethnic cleansing of the majority Albanians in Kosovo, burning villages and forcing some 700,000 Kosovo Albanians to seek refuge in neighboring Albania, which touched off NATO intervention.
—Peter Lucas, Boston Herald, 28 Feb. 2026
Among them was the brother of Sylville Smith, whose death at the hands of police touched off three days of rioting.
—La Risa R. Lynch, jsonline.com, 19 Feb. 2026
Bart Jansen, USA Today, 28 Mar. 2026
But a buying frenzy touched off by the pandemic in 2020 depleted the inventory of homes for sale across the Hartford region and throughout much of Connecticut.
—Kenneth R. Gosselin, Hartford Courant, 22 Mar. 2026
Graves’ shot touched off a celebration on the Santa Clara bench.
—Jerry McDonald, Mercury News, 20 Mar. 2026
The boat, left there on shore, had touched off a prompt alarm.
—Elwyn "bud" Myers, Outdoor Life, 11 Mar. 2026
Your case touched off a global movement.
—Maer Roshan, HollywoodReporter, 10 Mar. 2026
In the immediate aftermath of the finale versus Canada, the nationwide celebration also touched off some controversy of its own.
—Jess Myers, Twin Cities, 1 Mar. 2026
During the war, Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic ordered the ethnic cleansing of the majority Albanians in Kosovo, burning villages and forcing some 700,000 Kosovo Albanians to seek refuge in neighboring Albania, which touched off NATO intervention.
—Peter Lucas, Boston Herald, 28 Feb. 2026
Among them was the brother of Sylville Smith, whose death at the hands of police touched off three days of rioting.
—La Risa R. Lynch, jsonline.com, 19 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for touched off
Verb
-
Like a grill, when activated by an operator, the drone stations open a lid.—
Dillon Thomas,
CBS News,
31 Mar. 2026
-
The woman, whom Newtown referred to only as Jessica to protect her privacy, activated her personal locator beacon.—
Madison Dapcevich,
Outside,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Matches without goals triggered texts to Garden requesting immediate Wyscout Zoom sessions.—
Megan Feringa,
New York Times,
1 Apr. 2026
-
After six days of marching under the barrel of an assault rifle, Caldwell triggered his group’s escape by pushing one of their captors off a cliff.—
Namir Khaliq,
Big Think,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
And the bottom of the order once more sparked the way in what became a 13-9 victory over Minnesota on Wednesday night at Kauffman Stadium.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
2 Apr. 2026
-
Data centers have sparked backlash from communities across the state that are worried about higher utility bills, strained power grids and water being diverted away from families to cool servers at massive data centers.—
Brendan Steinhauser,
Sun Sentinel,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Investors are now bracing for the war to last for some time, which would likely set off inflation in global markets and could stunt Asia's economic growth.—
Lucia I Suarez Sang,
CBS News,
31 Mar. 2026
-
Odom set off that October for Hof’s Love Ranch in Crystal, about 80 miles outside of Las Vegas.—
Assistant Editor,
Los Angeles Times,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Nico Hoerner, batting leadoff for the first time this season, was 3-for-5 with two doubles while Matt Shaw had two hits and drove in two runs for the Cubs (3-3).—
Jeff Vorva,
Chicago Tribune,
2 Apr. 2026
-
After tracking down the address, Sanchez and her daughter drove to the 3-bedroom house on Eureka Drive and extracted Cesar.—
Carol Marbin Miller,
Miami Herald,
2 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Touched off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/touched%20off. Accessed 3 Apr. 2026.
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