touching down
Making contact below
Touching down is making contact with the ground after flight or descent.
Aircraft touch down on runways; spacecraft touch down on planetary surfaces.
In American football, touching down scores points by carrying or catching the ball in the end zone—the origin of touchdown.
The phrase can also mean arriving briefly: I'm just touching down for a few hours before heading out again.
- impactForceful contact or consequence
- landingDescent's final moment
- soft landingControlled, gradual descent
- stopCease all motion
- alightTo descend and settle
arrival · runway · end zone · end zone dance · ground · first contact · settle · splashdown · homecoming · footfall · feet first · descent · tire · lunar landing · wheels · disembark · skidding · tarmac
touching downtaking off
Starting upward flight
lifting off · launching · ascending · rising · departing
touching downtaking off
Starting upward flight
departing · leaving · embarking · setting off · setting out
down, touch, touching, touched, untouched, touches, tactile, untouchable, touchable