HOT BUTTON Synonyms: 34 Similar and Opposite Words

hot-button 1 of 2

adjective

Definition of hot-button

as in contentious

relating to or causing the expression of opposing opinions the new plan raises a number of hot-button issues that are sure to get voters riled up

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

hot button

2 of 2

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 hot-button

Adjective

When and where hyperscale data centers should be constructed in Kansas has emerged as a hot-button issue in the 2026 governor race. — Matthew Kelly, Kansas City Star, 24 Sep. 2026 The issue has become a hot-button campaign debate ahead of November’s school board election. — Kate Armanini, Chicago Tribune, 24 Sep. 2026

Noun

The case became a hot button issue at the time amid a rash of disappearances and murders of Black women and girls in the Midwest state. — Michael Loria, USA Today, 30 June 2026 Instead, the panelists raised a familiar array of hot button issues — gas prices, wildfires, home insurance, homelessness, health care, housing shortages and education lapses — and asked for reactions. — Dan Walters, Mercury News, 2 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for hot-button

Recent Examples of Synonyms for hot-button

Adjective

What readers are saying The conversation explores the contentious issue of whether doctors should charge for responding to patient emails.

— Ishani Ganguli, Washington Post, 1 Oct. 2026
Court records show McKinsey’s killing came during a contentious divorce with his wife, Candice Jang, and a custody battle over the couple’s three young children.

— ABC News, ABC News, 1 Oct. 2026

Definition of contentious

Noun

School closures have been a political third rail in Chicago since officials shuttered 50 schools in 2013, a move that prompted widespread outcry across the city.

— Kate Armanini, Chicago Tribune, 24 Sep. 2026
After learning that passengers had self-evacuated, Metro-North Railroad disconnected the third rail and suspended train service to the Lower Level of Grand Central, the MTA said in its release.

— Charmaine Patterson, PEOPLE, 17 Sep. 2026

Definition of third rail

Adjective

Much of that flood of silicon is going to the data centers that are popping up all over and are increasingly controversial as AI prepares to remake the economy, work, life and thought.

— Evan Clark, Footwear News, 6 Oct. 2026
Now those tensions threaten to ignite once more following a provocative celebration by one of Haiti’s star players as his controversial remarks and the fallout inject fresh friction into the relationship.

— Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 6 Oct. 2026

Definition of controversial

Browse Nearby Words

hot-bloodedness

hot-button

hot button

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Cite this Entry

Style

“Hot-button.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hot-button. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of hot-button

adjective

noun

Example Sentences

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