Meaning of Fonzie touch | Babel Free

Definitions

Hitting an electrical appliance to make it work. Any similar rough treatment that proves successful.

informal

Examples

“Often when something doesn't work for me, I just restart the computer and try again. Often this jars something loose, akin to the ole Fonzie touch.”

“We wish we had the Fonzie touch — give it a little kick and voila, it's working. Unfortunately, printers don't like to be kicked.”

“2005, Rocket Jones (archive). http://rocketjones.mu.nu/archives/2005_06.php I have to do that to get the door of my pickup truck open sometimes. - Rookie astronaut Donald Pettit after he used his Fonzie touch to open a hatch on the International Space Station”

“2006, http://www.motoringfile.com/2005/08/24/the_mini_window_motor_issue/ I had the driver’s side window motor replaced about three weeks ago on my ‘03 MC. Last weekend, the passenger side started acting up, but I guess I don’t have the “Fonzie” touch — beating on the door panel didn’t do anything but hurt my hand.”

“Usually, when things in the dashboard don't work, I just bang on it, and they start working again. This happened often with the speedometer. The Fonzie touch would not work for the radio.”

CEFR level