Synonyms of touchstones

touchstones

noun

plural of touchstone

as in standards

something set up as an example against which others of the same type are compared

his book has long been a touchstone for travel writing that aspires to be literature

Synonyms & Similar Words

• standards
• criteria
• benchmarks
• metrics
• yardsticks
• measures
• barometers
• examples
• norms
• grades
• pars
• instances
• rules
• bars
• marks
• gold standards
• pinnacles
• averages
• cases
• summits
• meridians
• zeniths
• peaks
• apexes
• acmes

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• deviations
• abnormalities
• aberrations

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of touchstones

The touchstones are plentiful—Harmonia’s cyclical drift, Alice Coltrane’s stargazing elegies, gamelan’s hypnotic shimmer—but the song is strange and unpredictable. — Dash Lewis, Pitchfork, 13 July 2026

The 2016 animation featured cultural touchstones nodding to Polynesian culture and folklore, and those moments resonated with audiences. — Jazz Tangcay, Variety, 11 July 2026

One of the show’s touchstones is an outsized painting by the Yugoslav-Bosnian artist (and former soldier) Ismet Mujezinovic titled Charge (1947). — Ara H. Merjian, ARTnews.com, 10 July 2026

Critics and fanboy media thrashed Supergirl not just for its Guardians of the Galaxy touchstones, but also for aping Mad Max. — Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 29 June 2026

Beyond those obvious touchstones, though, there are surprising influences for this latest game. — George Yang, Space.com, 22 June 2026

Some shows were educational, some were pure, glorious junk food for the mind, and others became cultural touchstones. — Lauren Brown West-Rosenthal, Parents, 22 June 2026

As Freedom Needs a Soundtrack recounts, those early touchstones shaped Potts’ understanding of what music could do in the world, and also its limits. — Michele Amabile Angermiller, Rolling Stone, 15 June 2026

Red Lobster’s dining rooms have doubled as communal ground, touchstones of belonging for generations of Black families. — Rita Omokha, Vanity Fair, 12 June 2026