trigger-happy

[trig-er-hap-ee]

adjective

Informal.

1. ready to fire a gun at the least provocation, regardless of the situation or probable consequences.

   a trigger-happy hunter.

2. heedless and foolhardy in matters of great importance and recklessly advocating action that can result in war.

   Some called him a trigger-happy candidate.

3. eager to point out the mistakes or shortcomings of others; aggressively or wantonly critical.

   He's a trigger-happy editor with a nervous blue pencil.

trigger-happy

adjective

1. tending to resort to the use of firearms or violence irresponsibly

2. tending to act rashly or without due consideration

Word History and Origins

Origin of trigger-happy¹

First recorded in 1940–45

Idioms and Phrases

Inclined to act violently at the slightest provocation, as in They feared that the President was trigger happy and would send in troops at the drop of a hat. This expression alludes to being too eager to fire a gun. [c. 1940]

Example Sentences

But in his response at the panel’s meeting last week, McDonnell seemed to bristle at the notion his officers were too trigger-happy.

From Los Angeles Times

The Texas town’s megachurch in “The Hunting Wives” provides spiritual cover for trigger-happy hypocrites.

From Salon

This trigger-happy litigiousness is lampooned in a satirical “60 Minutes” segment in which CBS-style anchors nervously report on protests against “the president, who is a great man.”

From Salon

Instead of throwing Ripley into the grinder with a bunch of wisecracking, trigger-happy colonial marines, the story strands her on a prison planet and foundry where more than half the inmates view her as prey.

From Salon

“I saw my boy brought into this world and, horribly, I saw him taken out of this world by a trigger-happy cop,” Ramirez’s mother, Renee Villalobos, said in the same statement.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• antagonistic 
• bellicose 
• belligerent 
• cantankerous 
• contentious 
• energetic