trigger

[trig-er]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR trigger ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a small projecting tongue in a firearm that, when pressed by the finger, actuates the mechanism that discharges the weapon.

a device, as a lever, the pulling or pressing of which releases a detent or spring.

anything, as an act or event, that serves as a stimulus and initiates or precipitates a reaction or series of reactions.

Slang. triggerman.

verb (used with object)

to initiate or precipitate (a chain of events, scientific reaction, psychological process, etc.): Their small protest triggered a mass demonstration.

to fire or explode (a gun, missile, etc.) by pulling a trigger or releasing a triggering device: He accidentally triggered his rifle.

verb (used without object)

to release a trigger.

to become active; activate.

Idioms

quick on the trigger, Informal. quick to act or respond; impetuous; alert.

Origin of trigger

1615–25; earlier tricker < Dutch trekker, equivalent to trekk(en) to pull + -er -er¹

Related formsun·trig·gered, adjective

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

Related Words for trigger

prompt, start, produce, spark, provoke, cause, generate, elicit, activate

Examples from the Web for trigger

Contemporary Examples of trigger

People felt that crossed all lines, and then it became a story, so there are tipping points that trigger a public response.
Laura Poitras on Snowden's Unrevealed Secrets
Marlow Stern
December 1, 2014
I was the one to trigger the detonator, and for that I take full responsibility.
Hell Hath No Fury Like Valerie Trierweiler, the French President’s Ex
Lizzie Crocker
November 28, 2014
Even private institutions, which most likely have less bureaucratic hurdles to deal with, have been slow to pull the trigger.
Millions Promised for Ebola Not Adding Up
Abby Haglage
November 25, 2014
But witnesses say Muataz definitely was the shooter, and he even went so far as to apologize to Glick before pulling the trigger.
In Jerusalem Home Demolitions, the Biblical Justice of Revenge
Creede Newton
November 25, 2014
But this Pavlovian trigger cannot be effective indefinitely.
The Nuclear Deal That Iran’s Regime Fears Most
Djavad Khadem
November 22, 2014

Historical Examples of trigger

Had his fist in my face before I could get my finger on the trigger.
Way of the Lawless
Max Brand
He had missed, and when the sergeant was ready to pull the trigger also Slade was gone.
The Rock of Chickamauga
Joseph A. Altsheler
He pressed the trigger at just the right time as the buck was rising in the air.
With Trapper Jim in the North Woods
Lawrence J. Leslie
But he did not shoot, though one could see how his fingers must itch for the feel of the trigger.
Good Indian
B. M. Bower
Put up your sword, for the trigger falls easy, and my finger is a twitching.'
Micah Clarke
Arthur Conan Doyle

British Dictionary definitions for trigger

trigger

noun

a small projecting lever that activates the firing mechanism of a firearm

machinery a device that releases a spring-loaded mechanism or a similar arrangement

any event that sets a course of action in motion

verb (tr)

(usually foll by off) to give rise (to); set off

to fire or set in motion by or as by pulling a trigger

Derived Formstriggered, adjectivetriggerless, adjective

Word Origin for trigger

C17 tricker, from Dutch trekker, from trekken to pull; see trek

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

Word Origin and History for trigger

1650s, earlier tricker (1620s), from Dutch trekker "trigger," from trekken "to pull" (see trek). Tricker was the usual form in English until c.1750. Trigger-happy is attested from 1943.

1930, from trigger (n.). Related: Triggered; triggering.

Idioms and Phrases with trigger

trigger

In addition to the idiom beginning with trigger

trigger happy

also see:

quick on the draw (trigger)