torch 1 of 2

Definition of torchnext
as in igniter
a person who deliberately and unlawfully sets fire to a building or other property several suspicious fires in the past few months have probably been set by the same torch

Synonyms & Similar Words

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torch

2 of 2

verb

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 torch
Noun
With Baylor leading off and Collier anchoring, the moment felt fitting — one brother handing the torch to another. Ansley Gavlak, AJC.com, 8 Feb. 2026 That love affair with technology continued over Iger’s tenure at Disney, and is likely to be a torch that D’Amaro carries into its next chapter. Indrani Sen, Fortune, 8 Feb. 2026
Verb
Food and drink The all-day Mowry & Cotton with its upscale Americana interior and expansive patio has an approachable menu of seasonal salads, steaks, seafood, and flatbreads from the wood-burning oven along with crafty cocktails including a smoked Old Fashioned that’s torched tableside. Lizbeth Scordo, Condé Nast Traveler, 31 Jan. 2026 Several Palestinian vehicles were torched, and two Palestinians were injured. Amelie Botbol, FOXNews.com, 27 Jan. 2026 See All Example Sentences for torch
Recent Examples of Synonyms for torch
Noun
  • After eight days of examining the scene, analysts found that the light source matched the sparks from a flint ignitor and the flame from a butane lighter.
    Harrington Gardiner, CBS News, 17 Nov. 2025
  • The ignitor came in the form of fellow defenseman Jake Middleton delivering a bone-crunching hit – legally – to Stars forward Matt Duchene in the neutral zone.
    Jess Myers, Twin Cities, 15 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • If humans opt to burn more fossil fuels and increase climate pollution, that number drops to just four.
    Laura Paddison, CNN Money, 10 Feb. 2026
  • The reasons in this case, Dunn said, include the emissions released by the new compressors — which would be powered by burning gas from the pipeline — as well the noise and vibrations produced by the facility.
    John Moritz, Hartford Courant, 9 Feb. 2026
Noun
  • The arsonists were never identified.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 27 Jan. 2026
  • The cases started in the early morning hours on Wednesday, and the arsonist struck again on Thursday.
    Andrea Nakano, CBS News, 23 Jan. 2026
Verb
  • November 22 – December 21 Sagittarius, your spark lights the path ahead.
    Tarot.com, Hartford Courant, 10 Feb. 2026
  • Ella Morgan lit the lamp twice and assisted on the other goal for King Philip, leading a 3-1 nonleague win over Martha’s Vineyard.
    Brendan Connelly, Boston Herald, 10 Feb. 2026
Noun
  • An arson fire destroys the 43-year-old Globe Theatre on March 8 (the arsonist was never caught, but a firebug had set several blazes in the park that winter).
    Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Oct. 2025
  • In video released by police, the firebug could be seen setting fire to a small pile of trash next to the head of a sleeping passenger stretched out on the seat.
    Elizabeth Keogh, New York Daily News, 12 Feb. 2025
Verb
  • Payne intentionally fired four rounds at 25-year-old Kierra Lane, killing her at her Covington home with the pair's children present, prosecutors said at trial.
    Quinlan Bentley, Cincinnati Enquirer, 10 Feb. 2026
  • Payton’s longtime assistant, Lombardi was fired a few days after the Broncos’ AFC Championship Game loss.
    Jeff Zrebiec, New York Times, 9 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • Asphalt roofs ignited as the flames danced across the skies.
    Jacques Kelly, Baltimore Sun, 7 Feb. 2026
  • Details of what ignited the dispute were not released.
    Mark Price, Charlotte Observer, 6 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • If ‘Oxen’ occupies a region of Ulysses where Joyce’s exquisite ear for memorably musical sentences (‘Mild fire of wine kindled his veins’) takes a back seat to the leaden hum of meta-literature, that is no reason not to be awed by his chutzpah.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 5 Feb. 2026
  • Carlson pressed, perhaps hoping to kindle a spark of recognition.
    Jason Zengerle, New Yorker, 24 Jan. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Torch.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/torch. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.

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