touched


Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
touch/tʌtʃ/
verb
  • 1 come into or be in contact with.

    ■ come or bring into mutual contact.

    ■ bring one's hand or another part of one's body into contact with.

    ■ strike (a ball) lightly in a specified direction.

  • 2 harm or interfere with.

    ■ [usu. with neg.] consume or use (food, drink, money, etc.).

  • 3 have an effect on.

    ■ [with neg.] have any dealings with: he took jobs that nobody else would touch.

  • 4 produce feelings of affection, gratitude, or sympathy in.
  • 5 informal reach (a specified level or amount).

    ■ [usu. with neg.] approach in excellence.

  • 6 (as adj. touched) informal slightly mad.
  • 7 (touch someone for) informal ask someone for (money) as a loan or gift.
  • 8 (touch something in) chiefly Art lightly mark in details with a brush or pencil.
noun
  • 1 an act of touching.

    ■ a musician's manner of playing keys or strings or the manner in which an instrument's keys or strings respond to being played.

    ■ a light stroke with a pen, pencil, etc.

  • 2 the faculty of perception through physical contact, especially with the fingers.
  • 3 a small amount.
  • 4 a distinctive detail or feature.
  • 5 a distinctive manner or method of dealing with something.

    ■ an ability to deal with something successfully.

  • 6 Rugby & Soccer the area beyond the sidelines, out of play.
  • 7 Bell-ringing a series of changes shorter than a peal.
  • 8 archaic a test of worth.
– phrases
in touch
  • 1 in or into communication.
  • 2 possessing up-to-date knowledge.
lose touch
  • 1 cease to be in communication.
  • 2 cease to be informed.
out of touch lacking up-to-date knowledge or awareness.
to the touch when touched.
touch bottom be at the lowest or worst point.
touch of the sun a slight attack of sunstroke.
– phrasal verbs
touch at (of a ship) call briefly at (a port).
touch down
  • 1 Rugby touch the ground with the ball behind the opponents' goal line, scoring a try.
  • 2 American Football score six points by being in possession of the ball behind the opponents' goal line.
  • 3 (of an aircraft or spacecraft) land.
touch something off
  • 1 cause something to ignite or explode by touching it with a match.

    ■ cause something to happen suddenly.

  • 2 (of a racehorse) defeat another horse in a race by a short margin.
touch on (or upon)
  • 1 deal briefly with (a subject).
  • 2 come near to being.
touch someone up Brit. informal caress someone without their consent for sexual pleasure.
touch something up make small improvements to something.
– derivatives
touchable adjective.
– origin ME: the verb from OFr. tochier, prob. from a Romance word of imitative origin; the noun orig. from OFr. touche, later (in certain senses) directly from the verb.
'touched' also found in these Oxford entries:

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