touching
noun
Touching — the act of physical contact, or the quality of stirring deep feeling
Definition
The act of putting two things together with no space between them; "at his touch the room filled with lights"
In depth
Touching, used as a noun, names the act of bringing two things into contact, just as 'touch' does, but the word's far more common modern use is adjectival, describing something that moves or stirs deep emotion. The two senses share an underlying logic: an emotionally touching moment is one that reaches and affects a person as directly as physical contact would.
Origin
The word's figurative drift, from physical contact to emotional impact, follows a well-worn pattern across many languages, in which the body's most intimate physical sense becomes a natural metaphor for emotional reach. A touching story, in this sense, is one that manages to physically 'touch' something within the listener, however metaphorically, leaving an impression as real as any literal contact.
Usage examples
"Touching the old piano keys again, after so many years, brought back more memory than she had braced herself for."
"The eulogy was simple and touching, exactly as he would have wanted."
"There was something deeply touching about the small, unspoken kindness, all the more so for going unacknowledged."
How to use it
As a noun, touching describes literal physical contact, but writers should be aware that its adjectival use, meaning emotionally affecting, has become by far the more common usage in contemporary English, and context alone signals which sense is intended.
Related concepts
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