v. 1 put (one's) hand on, feel, handle She leant forward and touched my hand 2 bring into contact with, apply, put, set He touched a match to the fuse and ran 3 Sometimes, touch (up) against. be in contact (with), border, adjoin, meet, come up or be (up) against, push or press or lean (up) against, brush or rub (up) against, come or be together, abut The ladder is touching the freshly painted wall 4 lay a hand or finger on; meddle with, have to do with, interfere with, come near, approach If you touch me, I'll scream 5 drink, eat, consume, partake of, take, use, taste, have to do with He swore that he would never touch alcohol again 6 affect, impress, influence, disturb, move, stir, arouse, excite, impassion, stimulate, strike, Colloq get to We were touched by your sympathetic note 7 rival, match, equal, compare with, come up to, be on a par with, be a match for, be in the same league or class as or with, be on an equal footing with, reach, come or get near or close to, hold a candle to, measure up to or against, Colloq US stack up to or with or against No other car can touch our new model for speed and safety 8 Usually, touch on or upon. refer to, have reference to, pertain to, relate to, have a bearing on, regard, mention, allude to, speak or write of, tell of, bring up or in, raise, deal with, cover I must now touch upon a delicate matter 9 have access to, access, use, employ, make use of, put to use, avail (oneself) of, take, get, take advantage of I do not touch the principal, but try to live off the interest 10 touch down. land, alight, come to earth We touched down for fuel at Gander, Newfoundland 11 touch off. a detonate, spark (off), set alight, set off, ignite, light, fire, put a match to We touched off the gunpowder and blew up the arsenal b instigate, initiate, begin, start, set in motion, ignite, set off, trigger, provoke, foment, cause, give rise to Her offhand remark touched off a family row that lasted for years 12 touch up. retouch, patch up; beautify, enhance, titivate, renovate, spruce up She said that the painting had recently been touched up Mandy is upstairs touching up her make-up.
n. 13 feeling, feel, texture She wants nothing but the touch of silk next to her body 14 pat, tap, blow, hit, stroke, brush, caress She hated him so much that she cringed at the touch of his hand 15 dash, hint, intimation, suggestion, soupçon, bit, intimation, pinch, jot, spot, trace, tinge, taste, suspicion, smattering, colouring, smack, speck, drop, whiff, odour, scent, smell Cynthia has a touch of hypocrisy about her The salad dressing could use a touch more garlic. 16 ability, deftness, expertise, dexterity, adroitness, facility, skill, skilfulness, knack, capability, genius, talent, gift, flair Richard has a master's touch in everything he does 17 response, feel, responsiveness, feeling, movement, operation, performance level This piano action has an excellent touch 18 signature, trade mark, characteristic, influence, approach, style, manner, technique, execution, method I thought I recognized your touch in the furniture selection A woman's touch might have helped.