Word family noun touch untouchable adjective touched untouched touching touchy untouchable verb touch adverb touchingly
From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishtouchtouch1 /tʌtʃ/ ●●● S2 W2 verb 1 feel [transitive]TOUCH to put your hand, finger etc on someone or something She reached out to touch his arm. If your house has been burgled, you shouldn’t touch anything until the police arrive. ‘Don’t touch me!’ she yelled.touch somebody on the arm/leg etc A hand touched her on the shoulder.2 no space between [intransitive, transitive]TOUCH if two things touch, or one thing touches another thing, they reach each other so that there is no space between them As our glasses touched, he said ‘Cheers!’ Her dress was so long that it was touching the ground.GRAMMAR: Reciprocal verbsTouch is a reciprocal verb. This type of verb is used when saying that two or more people or things do something that involves both or all of them. It does not need to have an object: Their hands touched. In this sentence, touch is intransitive and does not have an object.You can also say: Their hands touched each other.His hand touched hers. In these sentences, touch is transitive.3 → touch something to something4 affect somebody’s feelings [transitive]EFFECT/INFLUENCE to affect someone’s emotions, especially by making them feel sympathy or sadness Her plight has touched the hearts of people around the world. She could sense his concern and it touched her. → touched, touching15 have an effect [transitive]EFFECT/INFLUENCE to have an effect on someone or something, especially by changing or influencing them He has touched the lives of many people. Unemployment remains an evil that touches the whole community. He was often touched by doubt (=doubt affected him).6 useTOUCH [transitive usually in negatives] to use or handle something The law doesn’t allow him to touch any of the money. It’s a long time since I’ve touched a piano.7 → not touch something8 → not touch somebody/something9 deal with somebody/something [transitive]DEAL WITH to become involved with or deal with a particular problem, situation, or person He was the only lawyer who would touch the case. Everything he touches turns to disaster. No school would touch a teacher who had been convicted of assault. 10 reach an amount [transitive] especially British English to reach a particular amount or level At the time, the unemployment rate was touching 10 percent and rising.11 hit/kick [transitive] British English to gently hit or kick a ball – used especially in reports of sports games Evans was just able to touch the ball away from Wilkinson.12 → not touch something/somebody (with a bargepole)13 → be touched with something14 expression [transitive]EXPRESS if an expression such as a smile touches your face, your face has that expression for a short time A smile touched her lips.15 relate to something [transitive]ABOUT to be about or to deal with a particular subject, situation, or problem Though the question touched a new vein, Nelson answered promptly. The discourse touches many of the issues which are currently popular.16 light [transitive] literary if light touches something, it shines on it The sun was just touching the tops of the mountains. 17 → nothing/no one can touch somebody/something18 → touch base (with somebody)19 → touch bottom → touch a (raw) nerve at nerve1(6), → touch wood at wood(3)THESAURUStouch to put your fingers or hand onto someone or something for a very short timeDon’t touch the iron – it’s hot!feel to touch something with your fingers in order to find out about itFeel how soft this material is.I felt his forehead. It was cold.handle to touch something and pick it up and hold it in your handsChildren should always wash their hands before handling food.The glass was very fragile, and she handled it with great care.Please do not handle the merchandise.finger to touch or handle something with your fingers, especially while you are thinking of other thingsShe fingered the heavy necklace around her neck.rub to move your hand over a surface while pressing itBob rubbed his eyes and yawned.scratch to rub part of your body with your nails, often because it itchesThe dog kept scratching its ear.Bob scratched his head thoughtfully.tickle to move your fingers lightly over someone’s body in order to make them laughThe baby giggled as I tickled him.grope to touch someone’s body in a sexual way when they do not want to be touchedThe officer was accused of groping several women in his platoon.touch somebody gently or lovinglystroke to move your hand gently over something, especially in a loving wayShe stroked the child’s hair.Our cat won’t let people stroke him.pat to touch an animal or child lightly several times, with your hand flatHe knelt down to pat the dog.She patted the little boy’s head.pet to touch and move your hand gently over someone, especially an animal or childThe goats, pigs, sheep, and cows here allow you to pet them.caress /kəˈres/ to gently touch a part of someone’s body in a loving waya mother caressing her childShe caressed his cheek.fondle to touch a part of someone’s body in a loving or sexual way – use this especially about touching someone in a sexual way that is not wantedHe tried to fondle her and she immediately pulled away from him. → touch down → touch somebody for something → touch something ↔ off → touch on/upon something → touch somebody/something ↔ up→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
touch• Make sure the wires do not touch.• Put the cards face down on the table so that the edges are touching.• This is because the contacts bounce as they touch.• He drew me closer until our bodies were touching.• Yesterday, the dollar touched a seventeen-week high of 1.4748 marks.• The soft touching and smooching stirred him back to life.• Every business Gibbons touches becomes successful.• For room service, touch button 9.• The pictures touched everyone present.• He gently touched her hand and smiled.• Something outside her, mysterious and huge, put out a kindly exploring hand and touched her.• Their insults and criticism never seemed to touch him.• It had lasted longer, but then she had still been touching him.• "What are you thinking?" she asked, touching his arm.• He touched his bandaged wound where the shaved hair had started to grow back.• A slight grin touched his face when he was told the news.• I cut my knee last week, and it still hurts if I touch it.• Don't let the wires touch or you'll get a very bad shock.• Wash your hands thoroughly after touching raw meat.• Don't touch that - the paint is still wet.• Quickly he went to the wall safe at the far end of the room and touched the combination.• Theresa could touch the floor with her feet.• Barry never lets anyone touch the piano.• Don't touch the plates - they're hot!• The plane touched the speed of sound in a power dive.• The plane came down so low that it's wings touched the trees.• They rolled up when I touched them, and tickled my fingers with their tiny legs.• I'm sorry - I didn't mean to touch your sore arm.touch somebody on the arm/leg etc• As soon as he'd gone, Reggie touched me on the arm.• Cranston touched him on the arm and pointed to the far corner, just past the huge gateway.touched the hearts• George Burns' sense of timing and captivating smile touched the hearts and funny bones of more than three generations.• Her words touched the hearts and minds of the students.• Their story touched the hearts of millions of our readers-and we were determined to do what we could to help.• Her plight touched the hearts of people around the world who raised £650,000 for her to undergo surgery in Pennsylvania.was ... touched by• Sethe was deeply touched by her sweet name; the remembrance of glittering headstone made her feel especially kindly toward her.• Miguel was touched by his concern but not carried away with thoughts of brother love.• I was touched by the concern.• The rector was touched by the feeling of the softly worn covers against his palm.• I was touched by the good wishes of the crew when I went ashore.• He was touched by the sight, and felt suddenly tender towards Tessa.• Her heart was touched by what the duchess had offered her and by what had been asked of herself in return.touchtouch2 ●●● S2 W2 noun 1 touching somebody/something [countable usually singular]TOUCH the action of putting your hand, finger, or another part of your body on something or someone She felt a gentle touch on her shoulder.touch of He remembered the touch of her fingers on his face.2 ability to feel things [uncountable]HBHTOUCH the sense that you use to discover what something feels like, by putting your hand or fingers on it the sense of touchby touch Visually impaired people orient themselves by touch. Bake the cake for 30 minutes until risen and firm to the touch.3 → in touch (with somebody)4 → be/keep/stay etc in touch (with something)5 → be out of touch6 → get in touch with something7 detail/addition [countable]DETAIL a small detail that improves or completes somethingput the final/finishing touches to something Emma was putting the finishing touches to the cake. There was a vase of flowers in the room, which was a nice touch. Brass pans added a decorative touch to the plain brick wall.8 way of doing something [countable]WAY/MANNER a particular way of doing something, or the ability to do it in a particular way The room was decorated with a very artistic touch. Our staff combine efficient service with a personal touch (=they do things in a friendly way). The feminine touch was evident throughout the house. His sure touch (=confident way of doing things) and attention to detail are just as evident now. Barbara has a magic touch in the garden (=she grows things very well). King obviously hasn’t lost his touch (=lost his ability) – his latest book sold in the millions.9 → a touch of something10 → a touch disappointed/faster/impatient etc11 → with/at the touch of a button/key12 → a soft/easy touch13 way something feels [countable usually singular] the way that something feels and the effect it has on your skin the warm touch of his lips14 soccer/rugby [uncountable] the area outside the lines that mark the playing areainto touch The ball rolled into touch. → common touch at common1(13), → a/the human touch at human1(5), → kick something into touch at kick1(11), → lose your touch at lose(1), → magic touch at magic2(5), → Midas touch, → a soft touch at soft(17)Examples from the Corpus
touch• Chance, coupled with rebellion and a touch of laziness.• He felt a touch on his shoulder and saw it was Mrs. Lyden.• Reid has a good touch for shooting the ball.• Well, that couldn't last, because I'd found my touch, right?• The ice caves add a nice touch to what could have been a typical roller coaster.• If the average middle class white schoolchild is out of touch with the literary standard, the minority child is doubly so.• Great service and a friendly staff give the hotel a personal touch.• Despite the tight squeeze, the office has graced Borrego Springs with a personal touch over the decades.• The soft touch of a clean cotton shirt was comforting.• The affected areas look like orange-peel and are cold to the touch.• A small neat iron bed with a shabby well-washed coverlet had one lumpy pillow and sheets which were hard to the touch.• With the touch of a wrong button, she could ruin the whole program.sense of touch• Nocturnal spiders, on the other hand, depend largely on an extremely delicate sense of touch to find their prey.• It is invisible once applied and users retain full sense of touch and natural mobility of hands.• My hearing is painfully acute, and my sense of touch and smell quite profound.• Millions of years of evolution have equipped us to delicately manipulate our environment through our sense of touch.• This is a natural outgrowth of the sense of touch.• He realized that the sense of touch is concentrated in the fingertips.• On the first day, concentrate only on your sense of touch.• Then, at the end of the day, write about five hundred words through your sense of touch.put the final/finishing touches to something• We can put the finishing touches to your programme.• The band are currently putting the finishing touches to their third album, which should be out early in the summer.• They will spend Valentine's Day putting the final touches to their wedding following a whirlwind telephone romance.• The more exacting you are in putting the finishing touches to the picture, the better the result will be.• With most members of the task force now dismissed, Mr Magaziner is putting the finishing touches to his report.• Over three, perhaps four difficult days they must put the finishing touches to a new treaty.• Meanwhile, Hilary Murphy, who sets the questions, puts the final touches to Bob's board.• Meanwhile paint from Porter will put the finishing touches to an entire village community in the United States.personal touch• Family photos and a clock that tells time backward add a personal touch to the sterile academic atmosphere.• But other customers prefer to write the messages themselves, for more of a personal touch.• Despite the tight squeeze, the office has graced Borrego Springs with a personal touch over the decades.• I think people appreciate that personal touch.• To be successful the hotel will provide a friendly atmosphere, good service and the personal touch.• Steve, a believer in the personal touch, made their day by laying on their favourite drink, chilled Guinness.• Reagan resorted to the personal touch as a matter of instinct and long practice.From Longman Business Dictionarytouchtouch /tʌtʃ/ verb [transitive] touch base (with somebody) to telephone someone you work with, or visit them for a short time, while you are spending time somewhere elseI need to touch base with the office back in Boston.→ See Verb tableOrigin touch1 (1200-1300) Old French tuchier, from Vulgar Latin toccare “to knock, hit a bell, touch”; from the sound 