key
nounEtymology
From Middle English keye, kaye, keiȝe, from Old English cǣġ (“key, solution, experiment”) (whence also Scots key and kay (“key”)), from Anglo-Frisian Proto-West Germanic *kaiju, of uncertain origin. The only sure cognates are Saterland Frisian Koai (“key”), West Frisian kaai (“key”), and North Frisian kai, koie (“key”). Possibly from Proto-Germanic *kēgaz, *kēguz (“stake, post, pole”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵogʰ-, *ǵegʰ-, *ǵegʰn- (“branch, stake, bush”), which would make it cognate with Middle Low German kāk (“whipping post, pillory”), and perhaps to Middle Dutch keige (“javelin, spear”) and Middle Low German keie, keige (“spear”). For the semantic development, note that medieval keys were simply long poles (ending in a hook) with which a crossbar obstructing a door from the inside could be removed from the outside, by lifting it through a hole in the door. Liberman has noted, however, "The original meaning of *kaig-jo- was presumably '*pin with a twisted end.' Words with the root *kai- followed by a consonant meaning 'crooked, bent; twisted' are common only in the North Germanic languages."
Definitions
An object designed to open and close a lock.
An object designed to fit between two other objects (such as a shaft and a wheel) in a…
An object designed to fit between two other objects (such as a shaft and a wheel) in a mechanism and maintain their relative orientation.
A crucial step or requirement.
- The key to solving this problem is persistence.
- the key to winning a game
- Those who are accustomed to reason have got the true key of books.
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A small guide explaining symbols or terminology, especially the legend on a map or chart.
- The key says that A stands for the accounting department.
A guide to the correct answers of a worksheet or test.
- Some students cheated by using the answer key.
One of several small, usually square buttons on a typewriter or computer keyboard, mostly…
One of several small, usually square buttons on a typewriter or computer keyboard, mostly corresponding to text characters.
- Press the Escape key.
In musical instruments, one of the valve levers used to select notes, such as a lever…
In musical instruments, one of the valve levers used to select notes, such as a lever opening a hole on a woodwind.
In instruments with a keyboard such as an organ or piano, one of the levers, or…
In instruments with a keyboard such as an organ or piano, one of the levers, or especially the exposed front end of it, which are depressed to cause a particular sound or note to be produced.
A scale or group of pitches constituting the basis of a musical composition.
- the key of B-flat major
The general pitch or tone of a sentence or utterance.
- ?, William Cowper, Conversation You fall at once into a lower key.
A modification of an advertisement so as to target a particular group or demographic.
- Another popular way to key ads and mailings is to use a suite number, room number, department number, desk number, etc. as part of the ordering address. With a classified ad, using such a key may increase your ad cost.
An indehiscent, one-seeded fruit furnished with a wing, such as the fruit of the ash and…
An indehiscent, one-seeded fruit furnished with a wing, such as the fruit of the ash and maple; a samara.
A manual electrical switching device primarily used for the transmission of Morse code.
A piece of information (e.g., a password or passphrase) used to encode or decode a…
A piece of information (e.g., a password or passphrase) used to encode or decode a message or messages.
A password restricting access to an IRC channel.
- if you know someone who is in the channel, you can query them and ask for the key.
In a relational database, a field used as an index into another table (not necessarily…
In a relational database, a field used as an index into another table (not necessarily unique).
A value that uniquely identifies an entry in a container.
Any of various tools comparable to a wrench (spanner) or driver, or, in some cases, also…
Any of various tools comparable to a wrench (spanner) or driver, or, in some cases, also called a wrench or driver.
- radiator key
- clock key
- hex key
A series of logically organized groups of discriminating information which aims to allow…
A series of logically organized groups of discriminating information which aims to allow the user to correctly identify a taxon.
A piece of wood used as a wedge.
The last board of a floor when laid down.
A keystone.
That part of the plastering which is forced through between the laths and holds the rest…
That part of the plastering which is forced through between the laths and holds the rest in place.
A wooden wedge, driven sideways between a bullhead rail and a cast-iron chair, to keep…
A wooden wedge, driven sideways between a bullhead rail and a cast-iron chair, to keep the rail securely in position.
The degree of roughness, or retention ability of a surface to have applied a liquid such…
The degree of roughness, or retention ability of a surface to have applied a liquid such as paint, or glue.
- The door panel should be sanded down carefully to provide a good key for the new paint.
The thirty-third card of the Lenormand deck.
The black ink layer, especially in relation to the three color layers of cyan, magenta,…
The black ink layer, especially in relation to the three color layers of cyan, magenta, and yellow. See also CMYK.
A color to be masked or made transparent.
- You can easily create this type of user interface by creating a bitmap with certain portions set to a predefined color you want to use as the transparency key.
- There are key controls that adjust the “slice level” or the level at which the key kicks-in and starts cutting a hole for the “fill” […] Chroma key is another form of keying, which derives the key cutter or hole from a selected color.
The free-throw lane together with the circle surrounding the free-throw line, the…
The free-throw lane together with the circle surrounding the free-throw line, the free-throw lane having formerly been narrower, giving the area the shape of a skeleton key hole.
- He shoots from the top of the key.
A key position player (a tall forward or defender).
- "It just means that one of them here and there will need to play on a small-to-medium forward (instead of Riewoldt) which is fine. Our keys are pretty agile."
Indispensable, supremely important.
- He is the key player on his soccer team.
- Lukas intimates that one of Disney's key attractions was "Main Street USA,” which "mimicked a downtown business district just as Southdale" had done.
Important, salient.
- She makes several key points.
- With the north London derby to come at the weekend, Spurs boss Harry Redknapp opted to rest many of his key players, although he brought back Aaron Lennon after a month out through injury.
To fit (a lock) with a key.
To fit (pieces of a mechanical assembly) with a key to maintain the orientation between…
To fit (pieces of a mechanical assembly) with a key to maintain the orientation between them.
To mark or indicate with a symbol indicating membership in a class.
- So I worked on a tissue-paper copy of the perimeter plan, outlining groupings of plants of the same species and keying them with letters for the species.
- The volume closes with thirty pages of "Notes, critical and explanatory," in which Thomson provides seventy-six longer or shorter notes keyed to specific sections of the synopsis.
To depress (a telegraph key).
To operate (the transmitter switch of a two-way radio).
(more usually to key in) To enter (information) by typing on a keyboard or keypad.
- Our instructor told us to key in our user IDs.
To vandalize (a car, etc.) by scratching with an implement such as a key.
- He keyed the car that had taken his parking spot.
To link (as one might do with a key or legend).
- The American Heart Association has prepared their own guide to classification and, keying it with the Standard Nomenclature of Diseases, have done much to encourage a concise yet complete diagnosis.
- The workman's compensation system rests on incentives (premium payments) that are keyed to the immediate and relatively undeniable nature of injuries; […]
- It also features special issues on "Live Longer, Better, Wiser," men's health, women's health, and issues keyed to important "disease weeks."
To be identified as a certain taxon when using a key.
To modify (an advertisement) so as to target a particular group or demographic.
- Keying advertisements and counting the number of inquiries received or the number of coupons returned to indicate the "pulling power" of a particular piece of copy or the coverage of a particular advertising medium.
To attune to
To attune to; to set at; to pitch.
- To Ethel alone she addressed a stray remark, keyed below the sound of other voices.
To fasten or secure firmly
To fasten or secure firmly; to fasten or tighten with keys or wedges.
- they Mouldered and keyed the Portico Arches with Pieces of Stone, because Brick was not strong enough
To prepare for plastering by adding the key (that part of the plastering which is forced…
To prepare for plastering by adding the key (that part of the plastering which is forced through between the laths and holds the rest in place).
To provide an arch with a keystone.
- The last arch in the permanant ^([sic]) bridge was keyed on March 26, 1850, and a single track was brought into use for goods trains on July 20.
Clipping of chromakey.
- After keying the background, you’d be left with a transparent background, where you can install anything—from images to videos that blend seamlessly into the main subject of the shot.
One of a string of small islands.
- the Florida Keys
A kilogram, especially of a recreational drug.
- So starting with ten keys of cocaine and two keys of heroin, Derrick put his plan in motion. Soon every major drug dealer and gang chief from Chicago Avenue to Evanston was in his pocket.
Alternative form of quay.
A surname.
The neighborhood
- neighborkey card
- neighborkey chain
- neighborkey change
- neighborkey fob
- neighborkey ring
- neighborkey signature
- neighborpublic-key cryptography
- neighborclef
- neighborscale
- neighborKey in the Encyclopædia Britannica (11th edition, 1911)
- neighborcandidate key
- neighborcard key
Derived
accelerator key, a golden key can open any door, Allen key, alt key, answer key, arrow key, autokey, barrel key, bedkey, bis key, boss key, bump key, business key, card key, car key, CD key, change key, check key, Chinese keys, chroma-key, chroma key, chuck key, clustering key, Command key, composite key, compound key, content key, control key, Cross Keys, Cuban Keys, culverkey, cursor key, dead key, dichotomous key, disk on key, electronic car key, enter key, escape key, false key, fin key · +236 more
Vish — recursive loop
No curated loop yet for key. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.
sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA