touchy

[ tuhch-ee ]
See synonyms for: touchytouchiness on Thesaurus.com

adjective,touch·i·er, touch·i·est.
  1. apt to take offense on slight provocation; irritable: He is very touchy when he's sick.

  2. requiring caution, tactfulness, or expert handling; precarious; risky: a touchy subject; a touchy situation.

  1. sensitive to touch.

  2. easily ignited, as tinder.

Origin of touchy

1
First recorded in 1595–1605; variant of techy2 (a variant of tetchy), by association with touch

synonym study For touchy

1. See irritable.

Other words for touchy

Other words from touchy

  • touch·i·ly, adverb
  • touch·i·ness, noun

Words Nearby touchy

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use touchy in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for touchy

touchy

/ (ˈtʌtʃɪ) /


adjectivetouchier or touchiest
  1. easily upset or irritated; oversensitive

  2. extremely risky

  1. easily ignited

Derived forms of touchy

  • touchily, adverb
  • touchiness, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012