touched off

verb

past tense of touch off
as in activated
to cause to function his obscene comment touched off a heated debate about the need for censorship on live broadcasts

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 touched off The story touched off an investigation by the United States Anti-Doping Agency that eventually led to the coach’s four-year ban. — Tracy Weber, ProPublica, 18 Sep. 2026 Trump’s tariffs on Canada, for example, have touched off a trade war with one of the United States’ closest allies. — Kim Hjelmgaard, USA Today, 5 Sep. 2026 Not since voters passed Proposition 13, an iconic property tax limit, in 1978 and touched off tax revolts in other states has a California measure potentially affected America’s taxation policies so broadly. — Dan Walters, Mercury News, 27 Aug. 2026 The controversy was touched off by a New York Post report that Gordillo lives in a spacious Bedford-Stuyvesant dwelling bought by his parents that is now undergoing renovations. — Josephine Stratman, New York Daily News, 24 Aug. 2026 Meanwhile, an electric color palette of zingy greens, bold reds, and Prussian blues–touched off with plenty of black accents–amplifies the property’s wildly original juxtaposition of antiquity and modernity. — Alexandra Kirkman, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2026 The still-unknown circumstances around Wells’ death have touched off rampant online speculation and prompted calls from Black leaders for transparency from local authorities. — ABC News, 21 July 2026 The receivership touched off a painful community journey that brought on job reductions, layoffs and school closures as enrollment sharply declined. — Howard Blume, Los Angeles Times, 9 July 2026 The order prompted the company to disable all global access to the two advanced systems and touched off intensive talks toward a resolution. — Josh Wingrove, Fortune, 27 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for touched off
  1. activated
  2. triggered
  3. sparked
  4. set off
  5. drove
Verb
  • The heavy rainfall activated the desert’s biological material, known as germplasm — seeds, bulbs and tubers but also the eggs of various invertebrates and reptiles.
    — Nayara Batschke, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2026
  • Officials said they will only be activated when a vehicle is traveling 11 miles or more over the speed limit.
    — Chelsea Hylton, CBS News, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of activated
Verb
  • Quarantine measures The emergency measures triggered across the region speak louder than the official reassurances.
    — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 5 Oct. 2026
  • His death triggered a special election that included Gallagher, McGuire and Democrat Audrey Denney.
    — Mathew Miranda, Sacbee.com, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of triggered
Verb
  • Israel responded with a military offensive that has killed over 74,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip according to local health authorities, left the territory in ruins and sparked an ongoing humanitarian catastrophe.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 8 Oct. 2026
  • Like Zuckerberg, Huang has argued against an industry-wide slowdown, saying the recent spike in safety concerns sparked by AI agents going rogue and hacking into other companies is just an engineering problem that needs to be solved.
    — Clare Duffy, CNN Money, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of sparked
Verb
  • That set off a flurry of Houthi attacks on Saudi infrastructure, and the Houthis’ announcement of a blockade against Saudi shipping on the Red Sea — now the main corridor for Saudi energy exports.
    — Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 2 Oct. 2026
  • That his name was leaked as a prospective future CEO to drama-seeking observers only set off erroneous ripple effects of speculation that Solomon was headed out the door.
    — Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of set off
Verb
  • Although robust buyer demand briefly drove yields down to session lows following the auction, yield levels above 5% remain substantially higher than the historical norm over the past decade.
    — , CNBC, 8 Oct. 2026
  • The suit says Her displayed doctored, sexualized photos of Henry and other officers, including in Henry's own office, and drove unannounced to a golf simulator in Woodbury where Henry was spending personal time.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of drove

Browse Nearby Words

touched down
touched off
touched (on)
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Touched off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/touched%20off. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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