touch English · revision 2701

+ {{infobox|confidence=probable|formation=borrowing|attested=c. 1300|origins=la-vul *toccāre}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /tʌtʃ/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|touchen]], tochen,^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024) [[bor|fro|tochier|t=to touch, hit, knock; to mention, deal with]] (modern toucher),^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) from [[la-vul|*toccāre|t=to knock, strike, as a bell]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024) the source also of Spanish and Portuguese tocar and Italian toccare,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) probably of imitative origin, from a syllable toc.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986)^(MWU 2024) Some have derived the Romance words from Germanic words meaning “to pull, twitch”, such as Old High German zucchen, but the shift from “pull” to “strike” is unexplained, and most modern etymologists prefer the imitative origin.^(Barnhart 1988) The OED compares the passage from “knock, strike” to “touch” with English thrust and push becoming put: a stroke at its lightest is a mere touch.^(Etymonline) The noun is from Old French touche, from the verb.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(NODE 1998)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ “To put the hand or finger on so as to feel; to bring into contact”: about 1300,^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) probably before 1300 in ''Kyng Alisaunder'';^(Barnhart 1988) the noun, “the making of contact; a blow”, is also from about 1300.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ From about 1300 the verb also meant “to concern, pertain to”, and in the late 14th century “to border on” and “to reach, attain”.^(Etymonline) The noun is the sense of touch from the late 14th century.^(Etymonline) In music the manner of playing an instrument is touch from the 14th century, of the piano from 1816,^(Etymonline) and in painting skill with the brush by 1815.^(Etymonline) The testing of gold on a touchstone, from the mid-16th century, led to the sense “a small quantity”, ''a touch of'', in the 1580s.^(Etymonline)^(Cresswell 2021) A slight attack of an illness is from the 1660s.^(Etymonline) ''Touched'' meant “emotionally moved” from the late 16th century and “slightly mad” from the late 17th.^(Cresswell 2021) In 19th-century criminal slang ''touch'' covered ways of getting money from people, and a ''soft touch'' is an easy mark, from the early 20th century.^(Cresswell 2021) ''In touch'' and ''out of touch'', of communication, are from 1884.^(Etymonline) Fencers' ''touché'', “touched!”, is from the late 19th century.^(Cresswell 2021)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 1300 – verb, to put the hand on; noun, contact.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * late 14th century – the sense of touch.^(Etymonline)

+ * mid-16th century – ''touchstone''.^(Cresswell 2021)

+ * 1580s – a small quantity.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1660s – a slight attack of illness.^(Etymonline)

+ * late 17th century – ''touched'', slightly mad.^(Cresswell 2021)

+ * 1816 – a pianist's touch.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1884 – ''in touch''.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Verb===

+ # To put the hand or another part of the body on something.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # To be or come into contact with.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # To affect the feelings of; to move: ''a touching story''.^(AHD)^(Cresswell 2021)

+ # To deal with or mention briefly: ''touch on a subject''.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # To handle or use, or to harm: ''don't touch my things''.^(AHD)

+ # To equal in quality: ''no one can touch her''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # The act of touching; contact.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # The [[sense]] by which pressure on the skin is felt; the way something feels.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # A small amount or trace: ''a touch of salt''.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # A manner or skill, as of a [[musician]] or artist.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # Communication: ''keep in touch''.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # ''(rugby, soccer)'' The area outside the touchlines.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[touchable]]

+ * [[touchableness]]

+ * [[toucher]]

+ * [[touchless]]

+ * [[touch-and-go]]

+ * [[touch-me-not]]

+ * [[touchdown]]

+ * [[touchwood]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[touchy]]

+ * [[touching]]

+ * [[touchstone]]

+ * [[touché]]

+ * [[toccata]]

+ * [[tocsin]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}