touchy
Americanadjective
-
touchier,
comparative
-
touchiest
superlative
adjective
-
easily upset or irritated; oversensitive
-
extremely risky
-
easily ignited
Synonym Usage
See irritable.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of touchy
First recorded in 1595–1605; variant of techy 2 (a variant of tetchy ( def. ) ), by association with touch
Explanation
Things that are touchy are hard to handle — not literally, but to talk about. Touchy subjects make people upset. There are a lot of touchy topics in life. Religion is a big one, since people have such different yet strong beliefs. Racism and sexism are touchy. Politics can be touchy. Asking someone how old they are or what they weigh are very touchy questions. Something is touchy if you need to handle it with kid gloves — or maybe avoid the topic altogether. People often use euphemisms — soft, evasive terms — for touchy subjects, to make discussing them easier.
Vocabulary lists containing touchy
The Catcher in the Rye
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Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life
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The Battle of the Labyrinth
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Even maritime cooperation in law enforcement has been a touchy subject.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
“One of the biggest things I struggle with is judgment, so opening up or writing about touchy subjects or things that mean something to me was hard,” Lani said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 9, 2026
Apparently veterans are very touchy about changing that and Trump seems to have dropped it.
From Salon ● May 28, 2025
"He captures Dylan's craning stance and the way he used hair and sunglasses as a mask, the insistent buzz and keen of his speaking and singing voice and the odd, touchy, insularity."
From BBC ● Dec. 11, 2024
“He's pretty touchy on the whole subject of his being unbearable.”
From "An Abundance of Katherines" by John Green
After all, this conversation isn’t totally unlike one you might have with a potential roommate, even if familial obligations make it a bit touchier.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 22, 2025
There is also the touchier question of how to address the legacy of both composers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 21, 2022
“The only thing people are touchier about than parenting style is dog ownership,” Roderick wrote Sunday in a typically sarcastic tweet.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 5, 2021
Mussolini eventually bowed out after saying that, although she wasn’t sure if American anti-fascists were more annoying than Italian ones, they were definitely touchier:
From Slate ● Mar. 31, 2019
Of course, no one said anything, their boss being touchier than a septic boil.
From "Artemis Fowl" by Eoin Colfer
And food is one of the touchiest characteristics for sure.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 21, 2023
The book’s timing remains among the touchiest of topics.
From New York Times ● Jun. 28, 2020
He willingly wades into the NBA MVP debate, the touchiest of all NBA topics.
From The Guardian ● Mar. 23, 2017
Another reason the study can’t definitively show its touchiest suggestion—that mammograms were overdiagnosing cancers—is no one knows what is happening to these early stage cancers.
From Slate ● Dec. 5, 2012
He was about the touchiest guy I ever met.
From "The Catcher in the Rye" by J. D. Salinger
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
