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McBride, the Commodores, Morris Day & the Time and Young MC have all either withdrawn or publicly denied participation after the lineup reveal touched off immediate backlash.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
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If that goes well, he could be activated during the final series before the All-Star break.
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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.
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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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Officials in New Jersey sparked mixed reactions after voting to pave the way for the redevelopment of a former iconic amusement park.
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The feat sparked scenes of jubilation in Doha, which our colleague Matias Grez was lucky enough to experience.
Verb
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In Canton, Ohio, a 46-year-old woman was shot in the back while asleep in bed after a man and others reportedly fired weapons into the air and set off fireworks to celebrate the holiday late Friday night.
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Kevin Pina’s rocket set off an eruption of joy, only for Cape Verde to trail at half-time mostly because of Maximiliano Araujo, the only Uruguay attacker showing any semblance of form.
Verb
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Jackson Merrill blasted a ball to left-center field leading off, and, two outs later, Jake Cronenworth drove in two runs with a shot to right-center.
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Sure, the proliferation of plastic with lounge benefits drove more visitors to the airport lounges.
Cite this Entry
“Touched off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/touched%20off. Accessed 6 Jul. 2026.
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