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touch off

   Also found in: Dictionary/thesaurus, Medical, Legal, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia 0.01 sec.
touch someone or something off
Fig. to ignite or excite someone or something; to excite anger or chaos. She is very excitable. The slightest thing will touch her off. The appearance of the fox touched off a furor in the henhouse.
See also: touch
touch off something also touch something off
to cause something violent or destructive to start Plans for a new homeless shelter touched off a storm of protest. Windblown wires touched off the blaze. There was a dramatic fall in stock prices, and no one is sure what touched it off.
Etymology: based on the literal meaning of touch off (to cause an old-fashioned gun to fire)
See also: touch
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O'Regan delivered him on the post to touch off Amicus Curiae by a neck.
Dbest jumps rivals into the ground for follow-up success; CORK by The Racing Post (London, England)
Myhre found himself picking the ball out of the net inside two minutes when Paul Wotton's free-kick from the left edge of the penalty area took a touch off Steve Caldwell.
We let our fans down: Myhre by Evening Chronicle (Newcastle, England)
Taylor warned that Enckelman will never be allowed to forget his nightmarish own goal, which happened after he allowed Olof Mellberg's throw-in to roll under his boot and referee David Elleray ruled it had taken a touch off the Finnish 'keeper.
Football: Villa face fans' wrath by South Wales Echo (Cardiff, Wales)
 
 
 
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