touch·down
ˈtəch-ˌdau̇n 
1
: the act of touching a football to the ground behind an opponent's goal
specifically
: the act of scoring six points in American football by being lawfully in possession of the ball on, above, or behind an opponent's goal line when the ball is declared dead
2
: the act or moment of touching down (as with an airplane or spacecraft)
touched down; touching down; touches down
: to reach the ground : land
: to place (the ball in rugby) by hand on the ground on or over an opponent's goal line in scoring a try or behind one's own goal line as a defensive measure
Examples of touchdown in a Sentence
Noun
What was the plane's speed at touchdown?
Verb
the plane will touch down in about 30 minutes
Recent Examples on the Web
Tom Murphy, arkansasonline.com, 14 Apr. 2024
Ward finished the first quarter 7 of 10 for 95 yards and the touchdown to Horton.
—Susan Miller Degnan, Miami Herald, 14 Apr. 2024
He was eventually replaced by Chuba Hubbard, who had an impressive stretch in the second half and finished with a career-high 902 rushing yards and five touchdowns.
—Mike Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 11 Apr. 2024
His final game came as a 49er and saw Simpson rush 14 times for 43 yards with a rushing and receiving touchdown in a 21-13 loss ending his career winless against the Cowboys.
—Lawrence Dow, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 11 Apr. 2024
The touchdown throw came in the second quarter of the NFL Wild Card game against the Dallas Cowboys and was part of a 27-0 run to start the game for the Packers.
—Lawrence Dow, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 2 Apr. 2024
Lofton scored three touchdowns that game, including the winning touchdown from 1-yard out with 24 seconds left.
—Susan Miller Degnan, Miami Herald, 2 Apr. 2024
Meanwhile, Arnold finished last season with 44 receptions for 782 receiving yards and hauled in six touchdowns.
—Shreyas Laddha, Kansas City Star, 2 Apr. 2024
He was named Offensive MVP of the title game after posting 316 yards and four touchdowns in the Broncos’ 44-20 win over UNLV.
—Ron Counts, Idaho Statesman, 2 Apr. 2024
Mark Ellwood, Robb Report, 11 Apr. 2024
Knowing there was plenty of time before the main event, only one destination was on PJ Washington’s mind when the Dallas Mavericks flight touched down at Charlotte Douglas International Airport.
—Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer, 10 Apr. 2024
Last week, 11 tornadoes touched down in various parts of the state.
—Marina Johnson, The Courier-Journal, 9 Apr. 2024
Over a 24-hour period, a total of 148 tornadoes touched down across 13 states in a swath from Alabama to Ontario, Canada.
—Jeff Suess, The Enquirer, 7 Apr. 2024
Last summer, Imax CEO Rich Gelfond touched down in the German city for a conference of theater owners, looking to hype the blockbusters that were about to unspool on the company’s football-field-sized screens.
—Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 4 Apr. 2024
Like many passengers who touch down in the nation’s capital, Clark has a pretty high profile.
—Sydney Page, Washington Post, 3 Apr. 2024
By the afternoon, meteorologists said that radar confirmed at least one tornado touched down in Sunbright, a small northeastern Tennessee city, according to CBS affiliate WVLT-TV.
—Emily Mae Czachor, CBS News, 3 Apr. 2024
The actor has just touched down in Sydney to kick off promo for the Luca Guadagnino film, with a little help from her longtime stylist, Law Roach.
—Hannah Jackson, Vogue, 1 Apr. 2024
Noun
There were not points after touchdowns after those scores.
—Tom Murphy, arkansasonline.com, 14 Apr. 2024
Ward finished the first quarter 7 of 10 for 95 yards and the touchdown to Horton.
—Susan Miller Degnan, Miami Herald, 14 Apr. 2024
He was eventually replaced by Chuba Hubbard, who had an impressive stretch in the second half and finished with a career-high 902 rushing yards and five touchdowns.
—Mike Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 11 Apr. 2024
His final game came as a 49er and saw Simpson rush 14 times for 43 yards with a rushing and receiving touchdown in a 21-13 loss ending his career winless against the Cowboys.
—Lawrence Dow, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 11 Apr. 2024
The touchdown throw came in the second quarter of the NFL Wild Card game against the Dallas Cowboys and was part of a 27-0 run to start the game for the Packers.
—Lawrence Dow, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 2 Apr. 2024
Lofton scored three touchdowns that game, including the winning touchdown from 1-yard out with 24 seconds left.
—Susan Miller Degnan, Miami Herald, 2 Apr. 2024
Meanwhile, Arnold finished last season with 44 receptions for 782 receiving yards and hauled in six touchdowns.
—Shreyas Laddha, Kansas City Star, 2 Apr. 2024
He was named Offensive MVP of the title game after posting 316 yards and four touchdowns in the Broncos’ 44-20 win over UNLV.
—Ron Counts, Idaho Statesman, 2 Apr. 2024
Verb
There are two ways that a private plane touches down in a new country, according to expert Doug Gollan, who runs the website Private Jet Comparisons.
—Mark Ellwood, Robb Report, 11 Apr. 2024
Knowing there was plenty of time before the main event, only one destination was on PJ Washington’s mind when the Dallas Mavericks flight touched down at Charlotte Douglas International Airport.
—Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer, 10 Apr. 2024
Last week, 11 tornadoes touched down in various parts of the state.
—Marina Johnson, The Courier-Journal, 9 Apr. 2024
Over a 24-hour period, a total of 148 tornadoes touched down across 13 states in a swath from Alabama to Ontario, Canada.
—Jeff Suess, The Enquirer, 7 Apr. 2024
Last summer, Imax CEO Rich Gelfond touched down in the German city for a conference of theater owners, looking to hype the blockbusters that were about to unspool on the company’s football-field-sized screens.
—Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 4 Apr. 2024
Like many passengers who touch down in the nation’s capital, Clark has a pretty high profile.
—Sydney Page, Washington Post, 3 Apr. 2024
By the afternoon, meteorologists said that radar confirmed at least one tornado touched down in Sunbright, a small northeastern Tennessee city, according to CBS affiliate WVLT-TV.
—Emily Mae Czachor, CBS News, 3 Apr. 2024
The actor has just touched down in Sydney to kick off promo for the Luca Guadagnino film, with a little help from her longtime stylist, Law Roach.
—Hannah Jackson, Vogue, 1 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'touchdown.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near touchdown
Cite this Entry
“Touchdown.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/touchdown. Accessed 24 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
touchdown
1 of 2 noun
touch·down
ˈtəch-ˌdau̇n
1
: the act of touching a football to the ground behind an opponent's goal
2
: the act of scoring six points in American football by carrying the ball over the opponent's goal line
3
: the act or moment of touching down (as with an airplane or spacecraft)
touch down
2 of 2 verb(ˈ)təch-ˈdau̇n
: to reach the ground : land
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