touch wood
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touch wood
Where it comes from
From a folk practice of unclear origin.
verb touches wood · touching wood · touched wood
-
To make contact with wood to avert bad luck, in accordance with a folk practice.
Touching wood possibly has reference to (a) the cross, or (b) the altar rails in days when criminals could take sanctuary in churches.
Similar: knock on wood
interjection
-
Hopefully; said while touching something wooden, to avert superstitious bad luck from what has just been said.
And the reds are going to avoid relegation this year, touch wood.
Similar: knock on wood
Talk about this word "touch wood." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/touch%20wood. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. touch wood. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/touch%20wood "touch wood." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/touch%20wood.Cite this
@misc{touch_wood_2026,
title = {touch wood},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/touch%20wood},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
