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 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
The plans have touched off stiff opposition from neighbors worried about soil erosion, already a problem in an area of steeply sloping topography, and potential well contamination.
—
Kenneth R. Gosselin,
Hartford Courant,
21 June 2026
That touched off speculation that perhaps a bachelorette party or some kind of pre-wedding celebration was afoot.
—
Lisa Gutierrez,
Kansas City Star,
20 June 2026
The decision touched off a heated political confrontation, with calls from the opposition for Sanchez's Socialist government to resign.
—
ABC News,
20 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McBride, the Commodores, Morris Day & the Time and Young MC have all either withdrawn or publicly denied participation after the lineup reveal touched off immediate backlash.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
Josh Wingrove,
Fortune,
27 June 2026
The plans have touched off stiff opposition from neighbors worried about soil erosion, already a problem in an area of steeply sloping topography, and potential well contamination.
—
Kenneth R. Gosselin,
Hartford Courant,
21 June 2026
That touched off speculation that perhaps a bachelorette party or some kind of pre-wedding celebration was afoot.
—
Lisa Gutierrez,
Kansas City Star,
20 June 2026
The decision touched off a heated political confrontation, with calls from the opposition for Sanchez's Socialist government to resign.
—
ABC News,
20 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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for touched off
Verb
-
If that goes well, he could be activated during the final series before the All-Star break.
-
It's also activated its voluntary load reduction program and is asking large commercial and industrial customers to cut their electricity use.
Verb
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These episodes have been triggered by intense heat domes — stubborn areas of high pressure that lock hot air in place — and are clearly supercharged by global warming, experts say.
-
Throughout the game, seeing green shirts on the large screen triggered cheers through the crowd, while boos came up when yellow kits were displayed.
Verb
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The Alexander Mountain Fire sparked west of Loveland on July 29, 2024.
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This has generated some confusion in the community, and sparked outrage from the owners of the previous Bud’s, which was run by the Ziyadeh family for over 30 years.
Verb
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With the country cash-strapped, the Arab Spring of 2011 set off a wave of mass migration into Europe, which coincided with the widespread perception that the extra numbers were placing further strains on already creaking resources of jobs, housing and healthcare.
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Prosecutors said that the group launched a premeditated terror attack on the detention facility inspired by antifa ideology, by setting off fireworks, vandalizing property, and shooting at police officers who responded.
Verb
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O'Hearn doubled twice, including one that drove in a pair in the seventh.
-
Bev Hendry, 72, and his brother, Brian Hendry, 67, drove to Miami in a van after attending the two games in Boston along with friends Bob Greig, 70, Steve Docherty, 56, and John Erskine, 77.
Cite this Entry
“Touched off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/touched%20off. Accessed 3 Jul. 2026.
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