touchy

[ tuhch-ee ]

/ ˈtʌtʃ i /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR touchy ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective, touch·i·er, touch·i·est.

apt to take offense on slight provocation; irritable: He is very touchy when he's sick.

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

sensitive to touch.

easily ignited, as tinder.

Nearby words

touchpad, touchpaper, touchscreen, touchstone, touchwood, touchy, touchy-feely, touché, touggourt, tough, tough break

Origin of touchy

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

SYNONYMS FOR touchy

1 testy, irascible, edgy, snappish, cranky. See irritable.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR touchy ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

touch·i·ly, adverbtouch·i·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for touchy

There are plenty of touchy subjects I am happy to discuss with my patients and their families.
Kids Don’t Know How Overweight They Really Are|Russell Saunders|July 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Nobody else was as forthright with me about this touchy topic.
Reading Prison Novels In Prison|Daniel Genis|May 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The question of military service is a touchier issue—but is it touchy enough to break up the band?
The Lapid-Bennett Alliance Is Breaking Down|Emily L. Hauser|December 6, 2013|DAILY BEAST
But could sharp elbows and a touchy personality knock out this frontrunner too?
Can Chris Christie Avoid the Giuliani Jinx?|Lloyd Green|August 12, 2013|DAILY BEAST

But a father's presence in the delivery room remains a touchy subject.
Sarkozy Missed Daughter's Birth—What People Think|Jessica Bennett|October 22, 2011|DAILY BEAST
She was a touchy ship, quick to resent and avenge a slight on her good name.
Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 156, Feb. 26, 1919|Various
The illustrations should be of the most graphic kind, and the descriptive part as narrative and touchy as possible.
Charles Lever, His Life in His Letters, Vol. I (of II)|Edmund Downey
I'm not referring to the lumber end at all; so don't get touchy.
Cappy Ricks Retires|Peter B. Kyne
She is so touchy, she said to the others, about Uncle Peters money.
The Corner House Girls|Grace Brooks Hill
Often have I noticed how the majority of men get touchy about their cooking.
Wings of the Wind|Credo Harris

British Dictionary definitions for touchy

touchy

/ (ˈtʌtʃɪ) /

adjective touchier or touchiest

easily upset or irritated; oversensitive

extremely risky

easily ignited

Derived Forms

touchily, adverbtouchiness, 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

touchy

adjective, touch·i·er, touch·i·est.

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of touchy

SYNONYMS FOR touchy

Related forms

Examples from the Web for touchy

British Dictionary definitions for touchy

touchy

adjective touchier or touchiest

Derived Forms