ENGLISH DICTIONARY

Touchy

Definition, Meaning & Examples

Pronunciation /ˈtʌt͡ʃi/ · Part of speech adjective

Quick meaning: Touchy is an adjective meaning (of a situation) Extremely sensitive or volatile; easily disturbed to the point of becoming unstable; requiring caution or tactfulness.

Meaning

(of a situation) Extremely sensitive or volatile; easily disturbed to the point of becoming unstable; requiring caution or tactfulness.

More Meanings

  1. (of a person) Easily offended, oversensitive.
  2. (informal) Inclined to engage in physical touch.

Example Sentences

It is an extremely touchy situation, with everybody's patience wearing thin.
He can be very touchy when you talk about his estranged son, so be as tactful as possible.
I can assure you, Mr Hosier, that other people are much more touchy about my blindness than I am.
Ashley: Look at the size of that ship! Kaidan: The Ascension. Flagship of the Citadel fleet. Joker: Well, size isn't everything. Ashley: Why so touchy, Joker? Joker: I'm just saying you need firepower, too.

Word Forms

Synonyms for touchy

Depending on context, synonyms include tetchy, delicate, touch and go, scabrous, irritable, irascible.

Antonyms for touchy

Common opposites include untouchy.

Related Words

Related dictionary entries include thin-skinned, feisty, ill-natured, huffy, sensitive, tricky.

Related Dictionary Tools

Sources & Attribution

FreeDictionaryAPI.com / Wiktionary · Original source · CC BY-SA 4.0

Dictionary data is provided by FreeDictionaryAPI.com and sourced from Wiktionary under its stated license.