trigger

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA ^(key): /ˈtrɪɡə/
• (US) IPA ^(key): /ˈtrɪɡɚ/

• Audio (UK)

  (file)

Noun

Singular trigger

Plural triggers

1. A trigger is the part of a gun that you push with one finger when you want to make the gun shoot.
   • Synonym: switch

   I didn't want to make him angry, because he had his finger on the trigger.

2. A trigger is a little thing that makes something bigger happen.
   • Synonyms: cause and reason

   Bad smells are one of the triggers for my headaches.

Verb

Plain form trigger

Third-person singular triggers

Past tense triggered

Past participle triggered

Present participle triggering

1. A little thing triggers a big thing to happen when it causes it.

   Those angry words triggered the beginning of the war.