Meaning & use
hot buttons
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“hot buttons” is a form of “hot button”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
nounpluralfigurative
Topics or issues that make people react with strong emotion, anger or argument.
Grammar: Plural of hot button: the debate pushed several hot buttons.
Patterns
- push someone's hot buttons
- press the hot buttons
The speech touched several hot buttons, including taxes and immigration.
Politicians often avoid hot buttons at family gatherings.
Religion and money are hot buttons for many people.
nounpluralinformal
Particular things that easily annoy or upset one person.
Grammar: Usually used with a possessive: my hot buttons, her hot buttons.
Patterns
- push someone's hot buttons
- know someone's hot buttons
My brother knows exactly which of my hot buttons to push.
Being interrupted is one of her hot buttons.
Slow service is one of his hot buttons in restaurants.
Common combinations
- push hot buttons
- The ad pushed hot buttons to get attention.
- hot-button issue
- Immigration is a hot-button issue in the election.
- avoid hot buttons
- Teachers try to avoid hot buttons in class.
- personal hot buttons
- Everyone has personal hot buttons that others should respect.
- press someone's hot buttons
- Don't press my hot buttons when I'm tired.
Synonyms and how they differ
- sore spots
- Sore spots usually mean a person's private sensitivities, while hot buttons can also be public controversies.
- touchy subjects
- Touchy subjects describes topics that need care, while hot buttons suggests they provoke an immediate strong reaction.
- flashpoints
- Flashpoints refers to the moments or places where conflict breaks out, and is more dramatic than hot buttons.
- trigger
- Trigger is closer to a single cause of reaction, whereas hot buttons names the subjects themselves.
Opposites
Word family
- hot button noun
- the singular form
- hot-button adjective
- describing an issue that stirs strong feelings
- button noun
- a small control or fastener, the root of the metaphor
Commonly confused: hot buttons or hot spots?
hot buttons vs hot spots
Hot spots are places of activity or danger, while hot buttons are topics that cause emotional reactions.
Practice
The candidate avoided the hot buttons and stuck to talking about roads and schools. What does hot buttons mean here?
Choose one answer.
Hot buttons are emotionally charged issues, which a candidate might avoid. The other options are literal or unrelated meanings.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “hot buttons”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.