hot button

hot button

n. Slang

Something that elicits a strong emotional response or reaction: an issue that became a hot button among younger voters.

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hot-but·ton adj.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

hot button

n

informal

a. a controversial subject or issue that is likely to arouse strong emotions

b. (as modifier): the hot-button issue of abortion.

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014