panic button

noun

: something setting off a precipitous emergency response
there was no pushing of panic buttons at the White House, no rushing of troopsJ. C. Harsch

Examples of panic button in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
In Georgia, a panic button system implemented less than a week before the September 4 shooting at Apalachee High School helped notify law enforcement officials of the incident almost instantly. Amanda Musa, CNN, 1 Feb. 2025 The plan is for the panic buttons to start being installed over the next several months. Nicholas Williams, New York Daily News, 6 May 2025 At Apalachee High School in Georgia, where two teachers and two students were killed in a shooting in early September, officials credited a new alert system — featuring ID badges with panic buttons — with helping save lives. Kate Selig, New York Times, 17 Dec. 2024 Mateo said that about 50 out of the more than 25,000 bodegas in the city have been equipped with panic buttons. Thomas Tracy, New York Daily News, 18 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for panic button

Word History

First Known Use

1900, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of panic button was in 1900

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Panic button.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/panic%20button. Accessed 28 May. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!