touch

touch¹ W2S2 [tʌtʃ] v

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1¦(feel)¦

2¦(no space between)¦

3 touch something to something

4¦(affect somebody's feelings)¦

5¦(have an effect)¦

6¦(use)¦

7 not touch something

8 not touch somebody/something

9¦(deal with somebody/something)¦

10¦(reach an amount)¦

11¦(hit/kick)¦

12 not touch something/somebody (with a bargepole)

13 be touched with something

14¦(expression)¦

15¦(relate to something)¦

16¦(light)¦

17 nothing/no one can touch somebody/something

18 touch base (with somebody)

19 touch bottom

Phrasal verbs

　touch down

　touch somebody for something

　touch something<=>off

　touch on/upon something

　touch somebody/something<=>up

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[Date: 1200-1300; : Old French; Origin: tuchier, from Vulgar Latin toccare 'to knock, hit a bell, touch'; from the sound]

1.) ¦(FEEL)¦ [T]

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 sb on the arm/leg etc

▪ A hand touched her on the shoulder.

2.) ¦(NO SPACE BETWEEN)¦ [I and T]

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.

3.) touch sth to sth

literary to move something so that it reaches something else with no space between the two things

▪ She touched the handkerchief to her nose.

▪ He touched his lips to her hair.

4.) ¦(AFFECT SOMEBODY'S FEELINGS)¦ [T]

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, ↑touching¹

5.) ¦(HAVE AN EFFECT)¦ [T]

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.) ¦(USE)¦ [T 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 sth

a) to not eat or drink something

▪ What's wrong? You've hardly touched your food.

▪ My grandfather was an alcoholic but I never touch the stuff (=never drink alcohol) .

b) to not deal with something that you should deal with

▪ I brought home loads of work, but I haven't touched any of it yet.

8.) not touch sb/sth

to not hurt someone or not damage something

▪ The older boys swore they hadn't touched the child.

▪ Parma had not been touched.

9.) ¦(DEAL WITH SOMEBODY/SOMETHING)¦ [T]

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)¦ [T]

especially BrE to reach a particular amount or level

▪ At the time, the unemployment rate was touching 10 percent and rising.

11.) ¦(HIT/KICK)¦ [T]

BrE 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 sth/sb (with a bargepole)

BrE not touch sth/sb with a ten-foot pole AmE

used to say that you think someone or something is bad and people should not be involved with them

▪ I wouldn't touch him with a bargepole.

▪ Financial analysts have warned investors not to touch these offers with a ten-foot pole.

13.) be touched with sth

literary to have a small amount of a particular quality

▪ His voice was touched with the faintest of Italian accents.

▪ Her nails had been manicured and lightly touched with colour.

14.) ¦(EXPRESSION)¦ [T]

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)¦ [T]

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)¦ [T]

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 sb/sth

used for saying that nothing or no one is as good as a particular person or thing

▪ He describes the events with a passion that no other writer can touch.

18.) touch base (with sb)

to talk to someone in order to find out how they are or what is happening

▪ I just wanted to touch base and make sure you hadn't changed your mind about seeing me.

19.) touch bottom

a) to reach the ground at the bottom of a sea, river etc

▪ He swam down but could not touch bottom.

b) to reach the lowest level or worst condition

▪ The housing market has touched bottom.

→touch a (raw) nerve at ↑nerve¹ (6), touch wood at ↑wood

touch down phr v

1.) when an aircraft touches down, it lands on the ground

▪ The plane finally touched down at Heathrow airport around midday.

2.) in the sport of ↑rugby, to score by putting the ball on the ground behind the other team's ↑goal line

touch for [touch sb for sth] phr v

to persuade someone to give or lend you something, especially money

▪ He tried to touch me for the taxi fare home.

touch off [touch sth<=>off] phr v

to cause a difficult situation or violent events to begin

▪ It was these national rivalries that eventually touched off the First World War.

touch on/upon [touch on/upon sth] phr v

to mention a particular subject when talking or writing

▪ The report touches on the relationship between poverty and poor health.

▪ These issues were touched on in Chapter 2.

touch up [touch sb/sth<=>up] phr v

1.) to improve something by changing it slightly or adding a little more to it

▪ She quickly touched up her lipstick.

▪ The photograph had obviously been touched up.

▪ The speech he finally gave had been touched up by his staff.

2.) BrE informal to touch someone in a sexual way when they do not want you to

▪ He was accused of touching up one of his students.

touch ²

touch² W2S2 n

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1¦(touching somebody/something)¦

2¦(ability to feel things)¦

3 in touch (with somebody)

4 be/keep/stay etc in touch (with something)

5 be out of touch

6 get in touch with something

7¦(detail/addition)¦

8¦(way of doing something)¦

9 a touch of something

10 a touch disappointed/faster/impatient etc

11 with/at the touch of a button/key

12 a soft/easy touch

13¦(way something feels)¦

14¦(soccer/rugby)¦

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1.) ¦(TOUCHING SOMEBODY/SOMETHING)¦ [C usually singular]

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)¦[U]

the sense that you use to discover what something feels like, by putting your hand or fingers on it

▪ the sense of touch

by 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 sb)

talking or writing to someone

▪ We'll get in touch (=start talking or writing to you) as soon as we know the results of the test.

▪ Can I have your phone number in case I need to get in touch with you?

▪ Bye. I'll be in touch .

▪ Are you still in touch with John (=are you talking to him regularly) ?

▪ I'm in close touch with Anna.

stay/keep in touch

(=keep writing or talking, even though you do not see each other often)

▪ Anyway, we must stay in touch.

▪ I met him when I worked in Madrid, and I've kept in touch with him ever since.

▪ I lost touch with (=stopped writing or talking to) Julie after we moved.

▪ I can put you in touch with a local photography club (=give you their address or phone number so you can talk to them) .

4.) be/keep/stay etc in touch (with sth)

to have the latest information or knowledge about something

▪ A regular newsletter keeps people in touch with local events.

▪ The speech was good and you felt he was in touch with people's needs.

▪ Rescuers were kept in touch through radio links.

▪ A head-teacher needs to remain in close touch with teachers' everyday concerns.

5.) be out of touch

a) also lose touch (with sth)

to not have the latest knowledge about a subject, situation, or the way people feel

be out of touch with

▪ I'm out of touch with modern medicine.

▪ The party cannot afford to lose touch with political reality.

b) to not know much about modern life

▪ Judges are often accused of being out of touch.

6.) get in touch with sth

especially AmE to realize and understand something such as your feelings and attitudes

▪ The first stage is to get in touch with your perceptions and accept responsibility for your relationships.

7.) ¦(DETAIL/ADDITION)¦

a small detail that improves or completes something

put the final/finishing touches to sth

▪ 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)¦

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 sth

a small amount of something

▪ Our furniture is guaranteed to add a touch of class to your bedroom.

▪ Add a lace top for a touch of glamour.

▪ 'What?' asked Hazel, with a touch of irritation.

10.) a touch disappointed/faster/impatient etc

slightly disappointed, faster etc

▪ He sounded a touch upset when I spoke to him on the phone.

11.) with/at the touch of a button/key

used to emphasize that something can be done very easily by pressing a button

▪ This card allows you to access your money at the touch of a button.

▪ You can get all the latest information with the touch of a button.

12.) a soft/easy touch informal

if someone is a soft or an easy touch, you can easily persuade them to do what you want, especially give you money

13.) ¦(WAY SOMETHING FEELS)¦ [C usually singular]

the way that something feels and the effect it has on your skin

▪ the warm touch of his lips

14.) ¦(SOCCER/RUGBY)¦[U]

the area outside the lines that mark the playing area

into touch

▪ The ball rolled into touch.

→common touch at ↑common¹ (13), a/the human touch at ↑human¹ (5), kick sth into touch at ↑kick¹ (11), lose your touch at ↑lose, magic touch at ↑magic² (5), ↑Midas touch,a soft touch at ↑soft