often attributive
1
: a burning stick of resinous wood or twist of tow used to give light and usually carried in the hand : flambeau
2
: something (such as tradition, wisdom, or knowledge) likened to a torch as giving light or guidance
pass the torch to the next generation
3
: any of various portable devices for emitting an unusually hot flame compare blowtorch
4
chiefly British
: flashlight sense 1
torched; torching; torches
: to set fire to with or as if with a torch
Examples of torch in a Sentence
Noun
several suspicious fires in the past few months have probably been set by the same torch
Verb
An arsonist torched the building.
police suspect that the owner torched the house for the insurance money
Recent Examples on the Web
Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 10 Apr. 2025
This has always been what separates Geno Auriemma’s and Chris Dailey’s program from the rest, the overlapping of All-Americans, the passing of a torch from one potential Hall of Famer to another.
—Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 10 Apr. 2025
Brian Sampson, Forbes.com, 16 Apr. 2025
The Vols are generally a willing and capable perimeter scoring team, particularly when Chaz Lanier is torching the nets.
—Jim Root, New York Times, 27 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for torch
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Noun
In a rare passing of the torch, Binoche takes the position from another woman, last year’s president Greta Gerwig.
—Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 10 Apr. 2025
This has always been what separates Geno Auriemma’s and Chris Dailey’s program from the rest, the overlapping of All-Americans, the passing of a torch from one potential Hall of Famer to another.
—Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 10 Apr. 2025
Verb
The Indiana Pacers’ floor general has torched Milwaukee repeatedly, leading his team to key victories while letting everyone know about it, one celebration at a time.
—Brian Sampson, Forbes.com, 16 Apr. 2025
The Vols are generally a willing and capable perimeter scoring team, particularly when Chaz Lanier is torching the nets.
—Jim Root, New York Times, 27 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for torch
Cite this Entry
“Torch.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/torch. Accessed 23 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
TORCH
noun
: a group of pathological agents that cause similar symptoms in newborns and that include especially a toxoplasma (Toxoplasma gonii), cytomegalovirus, herpes simplex virus, and the togavirus causing German measles
Etymology
Noun
toxoplasma, rubella virus, cytomegalovirus, herpes simplex virus
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