touchdown

1 of 2

noun

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)

touch down

2 of 2

verb

touched down; touching down; touches down

intransitive verb

: to reach the ground : land

transitive verb

: 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

Synonyms

Verb

• alight
• land
• light
• perch
• roost
• settle

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

Noun

Darnold did not have his best game against Chicago’s disappointing defense, but the Vikings put the game away with a pair of rushing touchdowns by Aaron Jones and Cam Akers in the second half. —Steve Silverman, Forbes, 18 Dec. 2024

Despite that, Williams has 17 passing touchdowns compared to just five interceptions, is completing 62% of his passes and is closing in on 3,000 yards. —Evan Bleier, Newsweek, 17 Dec. 2024

Verb

The Griffin lander will touch down on Mons Mouton near the western rim of Nobile crater close to the lunar south pole. —Richard Tribou, Orlando Sentinel, 8 Dec. 2024

Jeremy Strong, Jim Parsons (twice), Rachel McAdams (to my mind, the most impressive stage debut of the year), Rachel Zegler, and more have all touched down in New York for limited engagements, some more artistically successful than others but all doing pretty good business. —Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 5 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1856, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1859, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Kids 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