Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English - touch

~1 v »FEEL SB/STH PHYSICALLY« 1 to put your hand or another part of your body on something or someone so that you can feel them  (Small children are constantly moving and wanting to touch everything. | She couldn't bear the thought of touching a dead body.) 2 to put your hand or any part of your body on someone in a sexual way  (Ben hadn't touched her yet. Hadn't even kissed her. | She bent over me, touching me with her lips.) 3 to put your hand on someone in order to show them kindness or affection  (He put his hand out to touch the young man's shoulder. | He was a remote man who hardly ever played with or even touched his children.) 4 if two things are touching, they reach each other so that there is no space between them  (I sat facing him our knees touching. | touch sth)  (The little boy's legs were too short to touch the ground.) 5 not touch sb to not hit someone or hurt them physically  (The older boys swore they hadn't touched the child.) »AFFECT SB's FEELINGS« 6 to make someone feel upset, sympathetic, interested etc  (His harsh words had obviously touched her although she tried not to show it. | Politics didn't touch me an awful lot those days.) 7 touch a nerve to mention a subject that makes someone feel upset, or angry  (I think you touched a nerve when you brought up the subject of divorce.) 8 be touched by sth to feel grateful for or pleased about something nice that someone does  (I was very touched by his kind letter.)  (- see also touching1) »USE HANDLE« 9 a) »OBJECT/POSSESSION« not touch sth to not use or handle something  (I've never touched a penny of that money. | He has a car but I'm sure he wouldn't let you touch it. | Don't touch (sth) spoken (=used whenyou are warning someone not to handle or touch something because it is dangerous or not allowed))  ("Don't touch that switch!" his father shouted.) b) »FOOD/DRINK« to not eat or drink the thing mentioned  (She went to school without touching her breakfast. | He rarely ever touches alcohol, except at Christmas. | not/never touch the stuff (=not drink alcohol))  (My grandfather was an alcoholic and as a result my father never touched the stuff.) »DEAL/ATTEND TO« 10 »PRACTICAL MATTER/SITUATION« to deal with or become involved with a particular matter, situation or problem  (He was the only lawyer who would touch the case. | He's a walking disaster! Everything he touches goes wrong.) 11 not touch sth to not do any work on or give any time to something which needs work or attention  (The garden looks awful - I'm afraid I haven't touched it for weeks.) 12 wouldn't touch sth/sb (with a bargepole) BrE ten-foot pole AmE used as a way of saying that you think something or someone is bad in some way and you do not want to get or advise getting involved with them  (I wouldn't touch that house with a bargepole - it's almost falling down.) HAVE AN EFFECT ON 13 to have an effect on someone or something so that it changes or influences them  (They had lived in such isolation that the outside world had barely touched them.) 14 be touched by sth to be affected by a particular quality  (All the family were touched by a common genius. | There was no denying that his motivation was touched by self interest.) 15 if an expression such as a smile touches your face, your face has that expression for a short time  (A rare frown touched his normally placid face.) »OTHER MEANINGS« 16 to concern a particular subject, situation, or problem  (Though the question touched a new vein, Nelson answered promptly.) 17 nothing/no one to touch sth/sb, nothing/no one that can touch sb/sth nothing or no one that is as good as something or someone  (She's a brilliant tennis player - there's no one else here to touch her. | You can listen to a recording of a concert but nothing can touch actually being there.) 18 touch bottom a) to reach the ground at the bottom of a sea, river etc  (He swam down and down but could not touch bottom.) b) to reach the lowest level or worst condition  (After weeks of uncertainty, morale in the company has touched bottom.) 19 touch wood especially BrE used when you have just said that you have been lucky in some way in the past, because this expression is traditionally supposed to help your good luck to continue  (I haven't been ill yet this winter - touch wood.) touch down phr v if an aircraft touches down, it lands on the ground  (We all sighed with relief when the plane finally touched down safely.) touch sb for sth phr v informal to persuade someone to give or lend you something, especially money  (Can I touch you for a fiver until next week?) touch sth off phr v to cause a difficult situation or violent events to begin  (The government's actions touched off a storm of protest.) touch on/upon sth phr v to mention or deal with a particular subject briefly when talking or writing  (There is one factor we have not touched on, so far, in talking about personality.) touch sth up phr v to improve something by changing it or adding to it slightly  (The speech he finally gave had been touched up by his staff. | She quickly touched up her lipstick.) touch sb up phr v to touch someone in a sexual way when you should not  (He had a reputation for touching up his secretaries.) ~2 n 1 »SENSE« the sense that you use to discover what something feels like, by putting your hand or another part of your body on it  (Visually impaired people orient themselves by touch. | to the touch)  (Natural fabrics feel much nicer to the touch.) 2 »ACT OF TOUCHING« C usually singular what you do when you put your hand or another part of your body on or against something or someone either deliberately or not  (A smile, a friendly gesture, a touch - any of these can be of an enormous help. | I couldn't move. The slightest touch hurt. | at the touch of a button (=used to emphasize how easily something practical can be done))  (We can contact people on the other side of the world at the touch of a button nowadays.) 3 »FEEL SB/STH« C usually singular the way that someone or something feels and the effect they have on your body  (She longed to see him again and feel his touch. | The child recoiled from the thought of the cold slimy touch of the snake's body.) 4 be in touch to speak especially on the telephone, or write to someone about something  (I'll be in touch when I get back from Paris.)  (My officials have been in touch with the department concerning their comments.) 5 get in touch to write or speak to someone on the telephone in order to tell them something  (We'll get in touch as soon as we know the results of the test.)  (You can get in touch with me at the office if necessary.) 6 keep/stay in touch to speak or write to someone when you can no longer see them as often as you used to  (Our neighbours are moving away but I hope that we'll still keep in touch with each other.) 7 lose touch to no longer speak or write to someone because they do not live near you, work with you etc  (I've lost touch with most of my friends from college.) 8 put sb in touch with sb to give someone the name, address, or telephone number of a person or organization they need  (Your doctor should be able to put you in touch with a specialist.) 9 be/keep/stay in touch with sth to have the latest information, knowledge, and understanding about a subject  (Through the media we are able to keep in touch with events on the other side of the world almost as they happen.) 10 be out of touch with sth/lose touch with sth to no longer have the correct information or a good understanding about a subject  (Government ministers are often being accused of being out of touch with real life.) 11 »DETAIL/ADDITION« a small detail that improves or completes something  (The flowers on every table were a very nice touch. | She was just adding the final touches to her speech. | finishing touch/touches)  (The necklace was the finishing touch to her wedding outfit.) 12 »WAY OF DOING STH« a particular way of doing something  (A more sensitive touch is needed in our approach to this problem. | The room was decorated with a very artistic touch.) 13 a touch of sth a very small amount of something  ("I'm afraid I don't agree," said Hazel, with a touch of irritation. | She had a touch of fever in the night.) 14 a touch cold/strange/unfair etc slightly cold, strange etc  (He sounded a touch upset when I spoke to him on the phone.) 15 lose your touch to lose your ability to do something  (He's been playing so badly recently that it seems he's losing his touch.)  (- see also the common touch common1 (8), a soft touch soft (11))