touch

[tuhch] /tʌtʃ/
verb (used with object)
1.
to put the hand, finger, etc., on or into contact with (something) to feel it:
He touched the iron cautiously.
2.
to come into contact with and perceive (something), as the hand or the like does.
3.
to bring (the hand, finger, etc., or something held) into contact with something:
She touched a match to the papers.
4.
to give a slight tap or pat to with the hand, finger, etc.; strike or hit gently or lightly.
5.
to come into or be in contact with.
6.
Geometry. (of a line or surface) to be tangent to.
7.
to be adjacent to or border on.
8.
to come up to; reach; attain.
9.
to attain equality with; compare with (usually used with a negative):
a style that cannot touch that of Shakespeare.
10.
to mark by strokes of the brush, pencil, or the like.
11.
to mark or relieve slightly, as with color:
a gray dress touched with blue.
12.
to stop at (a place), as a ship:
The ship touched shore several times during the cruise.
13.
to treat or affect in some way by contact.
14.
to affect as if by contact; tinge; imbue.
15.
to affect with some feeling or emotion, especially tenderness, pity, gratitude, etc.:
Their sufferings touched his heart.
16.
to handle, use, or have to do with in any way (usually used with a negative):
She can't touch the money until she's 21.
17.
to eat or drink; consume; taste (usually used with a negative):
He won't touch another drink.
18.
to lay hands on, often in a violent manner:
Don't you touch this child!
19.
to deal with or treat in speech or writing.
20.
to refer or allude to.
21.
to pertain or relate to:
a critic in all matters touching the kitchen.
22.
to be a matter of importance to; make a difference to; affect:
This grave decision touches all of us.
23.
Metallurgy. to stamp (metal) as being of standard purity.
24.
Slang. to apply to for money, or succeed in getting money from:
He touched me for five dollars.
25.
Slang. to steal from.
26.
Archaic.
  1. to strike the strings, keys, etc., of (a musical instrument) so as to cause it to sound.
  2. to play or perform (an air, notes, etc.) on a musical instrument.
verb (used without object)
27.
to place the hand, finger, etc., on or in contact with something.
28.
to come into or be in contact.
29.
to make a stop or a short call at a place, as a ship or those on board (usually followed by at).
noun
30.
the act or state of touching; state or fact of being touched.
31.
that sense by which anything material is perceived by means of physical contact.
32.
the quality of something touched that imparts a sensation:
an object with a slimy touch.
33.
a coming into or being in contact.
34.
mental or moral perception, sensitivity, or understanding:
He has a marvelous touch in dealing with people.
35.
ability, skill, or dexterity; knack:
to lose one's touch.
36.
Fencing. the contact of the point of a foil or épée or the point or edge of the blade of a saber with a specified portion of the opponent's body, counting one point for the scorer.
37.
close communication, agreement, sympathy, or the like:
to be out of touch with reality; Let's keep in touch.
38.
a slight stroke or blow.
39.
a slight attack, as of illness or disease:
a touch of rheumatism.
40.
a slight added action or effort in doing or completing any piece of work:
to provide the finishing touches.
41.
manner of execution in artistic work.
42.
the act or manner of touching or fingering a keyboard instrument.
43.
the mode of action of the keys of an instrument, as of a piano or typewriter.
44.
Change Ringing. a partial series of changes on a peal of bells.
45.
a stroke or dash, as with a brush, pencil, or pen.
46.
a detail in any artistic work.
47.
a slight amount of some quality, attribute, etc.:
a touch of sarcasm in his voice.
48.
a slight quantity or degree:
a touch of salt.
49.
a distinguishing characteristic or trait:
the touch of the master.
50.
quality or kind in general.
51.
an act of testing something.
52.
something that serves as a test; touchstone.
53.
Slang.
  1. the act of approaching someone for money as a gift or a loan.
  2. the obtaining of money in this manner.
  3. the money obtained.
  4. a person considered from the standpoint of the relative ease with which he or she will lend money:
    I can always hit him for ten—he's an easy touch.
54.
Slang. theft.
55.
Metallurgy.
  1. an official mark put upon precious metal after testing to indicate its purity.
  2. a die, stamp, or the like for impressing such a mark.
  3. an identifying mark impressed on pewter by its maker.
56.
Soccer. the area outside the touchlines.
57.
Rugby. either of the touchlines or the area outside of the touchlines.
Verb phrases
58.
touch down, (of an airplane) to come into contact with the ground; land.
59.
touch off,
  1. to represent or characterize precisely.
  2. to cause to ignite or explode.
  3. to give rise to; initiate:
    This incident will touch off another crisis.
60.
touch on/upon,
  1. to mention a subject briefly or casually; treat of in passing:
    In his lecture he touched on the major aspects of the controversy.
  2. to come close to; approach.
  3. to relate or pertain to.
61.
touch up,
  1. to make minor changes or improvements in the appearance of.
  2. to modify or improve (a painting, photograph, etc.) by adding small strokes or making slight changes.
  3. to rouse by or as if by striking:
    This should touch up your memory.
Idioms
62.
put the touch on, Informal. to try to borrow money from:
Willie put the touch on me for another ten last night.
63.
touch base with. base1 (def 36).
Origin
1250-1300; (v.) Middle English to(u)chen < Old French tochier < Vulgar Latin *toccāre to knock, strike, touch, of expressive orig.; (noun) partly continuing Middle English touche state or act of touching < Old French, derivative of tochier, partly derivative of the v.
Related forms
touchable, adjective
touchableness, touchability, noun
toucher, noun
touchless, adjective
intertouch, verb (used without object)
Synonyms
1. handle, feel. 13. impress. 15. move, strike, stir, melt, soften. 21. concern, regard, affect. 38. pat, tap. 48. hint, trace, suggestion.
Examples from the web for touch
  • Correcting post to reflect that capacitive touch screens use contact with skin, not pressure, as an input.
  • The amount of waters was beyond my imagination and the ability to almost touch the falls was overwhelming.
  • Prey touch tiny trigger hairs that release the door, which opens inward, sucking in the prey to their doom.
  • His genius was inclined to the pathetic, and none could touch with truer effect the chords of human sympathy.
  • So found researchers studying the interaction between physical touch and social cognition.
  • These berries with orblike cups, each tiny drupelet swollen with juice, should never be defiled by heat's wanton touch.
  • The money often goes to digitize the collections, so that no one will actually ever be able to touch the real objects.
  • The challenge, again, was to touch these squares in the proper sequence.
  • One of the biggest challenges in robotics engineering is mimicking the human sense of touch.
  • Don't touch the negative, as heat from your fingers will create fog marks on the film.
British Dictionary definitions for touch

touch

/tʌtʃ/
noun
1.
the sense by which the texture and other qualities of objects can be experienced when they come in contact with a part of the body surface, esp the tips of the fingers related adjectives haptic tactile tactual
2.
the quality of an object as perceived by this sense; feel; feeling
3.
the act or an instance of something coming into contact with the body
4.
a gentle push, tap, or caress
5.
a small amount; hint: a touch of sarcasm
6.
a noticeable effect; influence: the house needed a woman's touch
7.
any slight stroke or mark: with a touch of his brush he captured the scene
8.
characteristic manner or style: the artist had a distinctive touch
9.
a detail of some work, esp a literary or artistic work: she added a few finishing touches to the book
10.
a slight attack, as of a disease: a touch of bronchitis
11.
a specific ability or facility: the champion appeared to have lost his touch
12.
the state of being aware of a situation or in contact with someone: to get in touch with someone
13.
the state of being in physical contact
14.
a trial or test (esp in the phrase put to the touch)
15.
(rugby, soccer) the area outside the touchlines, beyond which the ball is out of play (esp in the phrase in touch)
16.
(archaic)
  1. an official stamp on metal indicating standard purity
  2. the die stamp used to apply this mark Now usually called hallmark
17.
a scoring hit in competitive fencing
18.
an estimate of the amount of gold in an alloy as obtained by use of a touchstone
19.
the technique of fingering a keyboard instrument
20.
the quality of the action of a keyboard instrument with regard to the relative ease with which the keys may be depressed: this piano has a nice touch
21.
(bell-ringing) any series of changes where the permutations are fewer in number than for a peal
22.
(slang)
  1. the act of asking for money as a loan or gift, often by devious means
  2. the money received in this way
  3. a person asked for money in this way: he was an easy touch
verb
23.
(transitive) to cause or permit a part of the body to come into contact with
24.
(transitive) to tap, feel, or strike, esp with the hand: don't touch the cake!
25.
to come or cause (something) to come into contact with (something else): their hands touched briefly, he touched the match to the fuse
26.
(intransitive) to be in contact
27.
(transitive; usually used with a negative) to take hold of (a person or thing), esp in violence: don't touch the baby!
28.
to be adjacent to (each other): the two properties touch
29.
(transitive) to move or disturb by handling: someone's touched my desk
30.
(transitive) to have an effect on: the war scarcely touched our town
31.
(transitive) to produce an emotional response in: his sad story touched her
32.
(transitive) to affect; concern
33.
(transitive; usually used with a negative) to partake of, eat, or drink
34.
(transitive; usually used with a negative) to handle or deal with: I wouldn't touch that business
35.
when intr, often foll by on. to allude (to) briefly or in passing: the speech touched on several subjects
36.
(transitive) to tinge or tint slightly: brown hair touched with gold
37.
(transitive) to spoil or injure slightly: blackfly touched the flowers
38.
(transitive) to mark, as with a brush or pen
39.
(transitive) to compare to in quality or attainment; equal or match: there's no-one to touch him
40.
(transitive) to reach or attain: he touched the high point in his career
41.
(intransitive) to dock or stop briefly: the ship touches at Tenerife
42.
(transitive) (slang) to ask for a loan or gift of money from
43.
(rare)
  1. to finger (the keys or strings of an instrument)
  2. to play (a tune, piece of music, etc) in this way
44.
touch base, to make contact See base1 (sense 26)
See also touchdown, touch off, touch up
Derived Forms
touchable, adjective
touchableness, noun
toucher, noun
touchless, adjective
Word Origin
C13: from Old French tochier, from Vulgar Latin toccāre (unattested) to strike, ring (a bell), probably imitative of a tapping sound
Word Origin and History for touch
v.

late 13c., from Old French touchier "to touch, hit, knock" (11c.), from Vulgar Latin *toccare "to knock, strike" as a bell (cf. Spanish tocar, Italian toccare), perhaps of imitative origin. Meaning "to get or borrow money" first recorded 1760. Related: Touched; touching.

Touch and go (adj.) is recorded from 1812, apparently from the name of a tag-like game, first recorded 1650s. Touch football is first attested 1933. Touch-me-not (1590s) translates Latin noli-me-tangere.

n.

c.1300, from Old French touche "a touching," from touchier (see touch (v.)). Meaning "slight attack" (of an illness, etc.) is recorded from 1660s. Sense of "skill or aptitude in some topic" is first recorded 1927. Soft touch "person easily manipulated" is recorded from 1940.

touch in Medicine

touch (tŭch)
n.

  1. The physiological sense by which external objects or forces are perceived through contact with the body.

  2. Digital examination.

touch·a·ble adj.
Slang definitions & phrases for touch

touch

noun
  1. : a quick ten-or twenty-dollar touch (1846+)
  2. A small serving of food or drink
verb
  1. (also touch up) To get or borrow money, a loan, etc; hit: Who better to touch up than the richest guys in town? (1760+)
  2. To deal with or handle something or someone •Usu in the negative: won't touch that one
Related Terms

soft touch

[touch up variant may be influenced by British touch up, ''to grope a woman'']


Idioms and Phrases with touch

touch

also see: