Link Centre Dictionary

trigger

trig·ger

UK/ˈtɹɪɡə/ US/ˈtɹ̝̊ʷɪɡə/ common
noun (3) verb (2)

noun

1.

lever that activates the firing mechanism of a gun

Synonyms
2.

a device that activates or releases or causes something to happen

3.

an act that sets in motion some course of events

Synonyms

verb

1.

put in motion or move to act

  • “trigger a reaction”
  • “actuate the circuits”
Synonyms
2.

release or pull the trigger on

  • “Trigger a gun”

Origin

Originally tricker, from Dutch trekker (“pull”, noun, as in drawer-pull, bell-pull), from Dutch trekken (“to drag, draw, pull”).

Phrases

  • chemoreceptor trigger zone
  • grim trigger
  • hair trigger
  • have one's finger on the trigger
  • itchy trigger finger
  • parent trigger
  • pull the trigger
  • Schmitt trigger

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Narrower terms

Parts

Entails

Causes

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.