touching

Provoking sadness and pity; that can cause sadness or heartbreak among witnesses to a sad event or situation.

Adjective

  1. Provoking sadness and pity; that can cause sadness or heartbreak among witnesses to a sad event or situation.
    • a touching story
  2. In direct contact with.

Origin

From Middle English touchynge, equivalent to touch + -ing.

Forms

more touching most touching

Synonyms

emotional moving sad pertingent juxtacrine

Derived

heart-touching nontouching touchingly touchingness untouching

Noun

  1. The act by which something is touched.
    • But we can also take a more analytical attitude to these displays, interpreting the movements as no more than approachings, touchings, and departings with no implication that one shape caused the other to move. - 2011,...
  2. A snack served with alcoholic drinks in an informal environment.

Origin

From Middle English touching, touchinge, touchynge, equivalent to touch + -ing.

Forms

touchings

Preposition

  1. Regarding; concerning.
    • Now as touching things offered vnto idoles, wee know that wee all haue knowledge. - 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, 1 Corinthians 8:1:
    • Every time I ascended to the deck from my watches below, I instantly gazed aft to mark if any strange face were visible ; for my first vague disquietude touching the unknown captain, now in the seclusion of the sea,...

Synonyms

about apropos as for

Verb

  1. present participle and gerund of touch