as in emotional
showing feeling freely
she is too touchy-feely and he is too stiff-upper-lip for their relationship to ever work out
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Recent Examples of touchy-feely
Valerie Bertinelli is standing up for Drew Barrymore and her naturally touchy-feely personality.
—
EW.com, 31 Jan. 2025
Drew Barrymore admitted that she has been warned about her notorious touchy-feely interview style.
—Ashley Hume, Fox News, 11 Dec. 2024
Collaboration gets pegged as: a waste of time (pulls people away from focused, individual work)
a way to get slow people up to speed at the expense of fast people
fluffy and touchy-feely
The brain science tells a different story.
—Kevin Kruse, Forbes, 11 Dec. 2024
So, naturally, when one of Jacob’s students becomes patient zero of a ringworm outbreak at Abbott, the touchy-feely bubble of the early stage of Gregory’s relationship with Janine quickly bursts, becoming their first real speed bump since going public.
—Ile-Ife Okantah, Vulture, 16 Oct. 2024
At first glance, this is the kind of touchy-feely corporate propaganda that exists to convince employees the company cares about them and assure clients of its human touch.
—Judy Berman, TIME, 2 Aug. 2024
But don’t be fooled by the introspective, touchy-feely Trump.
—Leonard Greene, New York Daily News, 21 July 2024
Heidi Klum and Tom Kaulitz are getting touchy-feely on their vacation!
—Escher Walcott, Peoplemag, 6 July 2024
Strays prides itself on being the counterpoint to the touchy-feely standard of the dog movie, though the subgenre isn’t all nose kisses and lesson-learning.
—Charles Bramesco, Vulture, 5 Feb. 2024
EW.com, 31 Jan. 2025
Drew Barrymore admitted that she has been warned about her notorious touchy-feely interview style.
—Ashley Hume, Fox News, 11 Dec. 2024
Collaboration gets pegged as: a waste of time (pulls people away from focused, individual work)
a way to get slow people up to speed at the expense of fast people
fluffy and touchy-feely
The brain science tells a different story.
—Kevin Kruse, Forbes, 11 Dec. 2024
So, naturally, when one of Jacob’s students becomes patient zero of a ringworm outbreak at Abbott, the touchy-feely bubble of the early stage of Gregory’s relationship with Janine quickly bursts, becoming their first real speed bump since going public.
—Ile-Ife Okantah, Vulture, 16 Oct. 2024
At first glance, this is the kind of touchy-feely corporate propaganda that exists to convince employees the company cares about them and assure clients of its human touch.
—Judy Berman, TIME, 2 Aug. 2024
But don’t be fooled by the introspective, touchy-feely Trump.
—Leonard Greene, New York Daily News, 21 July 2024
Heidi Klum and Tom Kaulitz are getting touchy-feely on their vacation!
—Escher Walcott, Peoplemag, 6 July 2024
Strays prides itself on being the counterpoint to the touchy-feely standard of the dog movie, though the subgenre isn’t all nose kisses and lesson-learning.
—Charles Bramesco, Vulture, 5 Feb. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for touchy-feely
Adjective
-
In a speech that lasted nearly five minutes, an emotional Gaga moved the crowd.—
Billboard Brasil,
Billboard,
5 May 2025
-
The visual adjustment seems intended to establish Rose’s emotional distance from her family.—
Alison Foreman,
IndieWire,
4 May 2025
Adjective
-
Goldendoodles, a cross between a golden retriever and a poodle, are popular for their affectionate nature, intelligence, and often hypoallergenic coats.—
Lydia Patrick,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 May 2025
-
Together, these studies indicate that boys may be especially sensitive to the quality of early caregiving—an argument to both increase social support for families and resist dubious assumptions that boys do not require substantial affectionate nurturing.—
Joshua Coleman,
The Atlantic,
30 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Touchy-feely.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/touchy-feely. Accessed 16 May. 2025.
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