Etimology
From Middle English keye, kaye, keiȝe, from Old English cǣġ (“key, solution, experiment”) (whence also Scots key and kay (“key”)), of uncertain origin. The only sure cognates are Saterland Frisian Koai (“key”), West Frisian kaai (“key”), and North Frisian kay (“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."
noun
key (plural keys)
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 mechanism and maintain their relative orientation.
A crucial step or requirement.
A guide explaining the symbols or terminology of a map or chart; a legend.
A guide to the correct answers of a worksheet or test.
(computing) One of several small, usually square buttons on a typewriter or computer keyboard, mostly corresponding to text characters.
(music)
(music) A scale or group of pitches constituting the basis of a musical composition.
(figurative) The general pitch or tone of a sentence or utterance.
(advertising) A modification of an advertisement so as to target a particular group or demographic.
(botany) An indehiscent, one-seeded fruit furnished with a wing, such as the fruit of the ash and maple; a samara.
(historical) A manual electrical switching device primarily used for the transmission of Morse code.
(cryptography) A piece of information (e.g., a password or passphrase) used to encode or decode a message or messages.
(Internet) A password restricting access to an IRC channel.
(databases) In a relational database, a field used as an index into another table (not necessarily unique).
(computing) A value that uniquely identifies an entry in a container.
(basketball) 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.
(biology) A series of logically organized groups of discriminating information which aims to allow the user to correctly identify a taxon.
(architecture) A piece of wood used as a wedge.
(architecture) The last board of a floor when laid down.
(masonry) A keystone.
That part of the plastering which is forced through between the laths and holds the rest in place.
(rail transport) A wooden support for a rail on the bullhead rail system.
The degree of roughness, or retention ability of a surface to have applied a liquid such as paint, or glue.
(cartomancy) The thirty-third card of the Lenormand deck.
(print and film) The black ink layer, especially in relation to the three color layers of cyan, magenta, and yellow. See also CMYK.
(computer graphics, television) A color to be masked or made transparent.
Examples
We tiptoed into the house, up the stairs and along the hall into the room where the Professor had been spending so much of his time. 'Twas locked, of course, but the Deacon man got a big bunch of keys out of his pocket and commenced to putter with the lock.
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.
who keeps the keys of all the creeds
The key says that A stands for the accounting department.
Some students cheated by using the answer key.
Press the Escape key.
the key of B-flat major
A girl, it is true, has always lived in a glass house among reproving relatives, whose word was law; she has been bred up to sacrifice her judgments and take the key submissively from dear papa; and it is wonderful how swiftly she can change her tune into the husband's.
2. Queen. […] Deere Glasse of LadiesBid him that we whom flaming war doth scortch,Vnder the shaddow of his Sword, may coole us:Require him he advance it ore our heades;Speak't in a womans key: like such a womanAs any of us three; weepe ere you faile; lend us a knee;But touch the ground for us no longer timeThen a Doves motion, when the head's pluckt off:Tell him if he i'th blood cizd field, lay swolneShowing the Sun his Teeth; grinning at the MooneWhat you would doe.
You fall at once into a lower key.
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.
if you know someone who is in the channel, you can query them and ask for the key.
He shoots from the top of the key.
The door panel should be sanded down carefully to provide a good key for the new paint.
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.
Related words
hyponyms
candidate key
card key
church key
database key
foreign key
keyphrase
keyword
major key
minor key
Morse key
passcode
passphrase
password
primary key
silent key
skeleton key
unique key
related terms
key card
key chain
key change
key fob
key ring
key signature
public-key cryptography
adjective
key (comparative more key, superlative most key)
Indispensable, supremely important.
Important, salient.
Examples
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.
The question of the plausibility of the counter-factual is seen as key in all three discussions of allohistorical fiction .
The enemy is moving troops through a key area. Distrupt their activities to open some holes in their defenses.
She makes several key points.
Throughout the 1500s, the populace roiled over a constellation of grievances of which the forest emerged as a key focal point. The popular late Middle Ages fictional character Robin Hood, dressed in green to symbolize the forest, dodged fines for forest offenses and stole from the rich to give to the poor. But his appeal was painfully real and embodied the struggle over wood.
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.
verb
key (third-person singular simple present keys, present participle keying, simple past and past participle keyed)
To fit (a lock) with a key.
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.
(telegraphy and radio telegraphy) To depress (a telegraph key).
(radio) To operate (the transmitter switch of a two-way radio).
(computing) (more usually to key in) To enter (information) by typing on a keyboard or keypad.
(colloquial) To vandalize (a car, etc.) by scratching with an implement such as a key.
To link (as one might do with a key or legend).
(intransitive, biology, chiefly taxonomy) To be identified as a certain taxon when using a key.
(advertising, transitive) To modify (an advertisement) so as to target a particular group or demographic.
To attune to; to set at; to pitch.
To fasten or secure firmly; to fasten or tighten with keys or wedges.
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.
Clipping of chromakey.
Examples
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.
Talk about similarities between the words and write them below to the left of the anchor, keying them with a plus sign . Talk about the characteristics that set the words apart and list them below the box to the right, keying them with a tilde sign .
Indicate the comparative value of each heading by keying it with a number in pencil, in the left margin, as follows: […]
Our instructor told us to key in our user IDs.
He keyed the car that had taken his parking spot.
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 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."
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.
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. Why? Because you're using an extra word or two to key the ad.
To Ethel alone she addressed a stray remark, keyed below the sound of other voices.
they Mouldered and keyed the Portico Arches with Pieces of Stone, because Brick was not strong enough
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.
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.
Etimology
Variant of cay, from Spanish cayo, from Taíno cayo (“small island”)
noun
key (plural keys)
One of a string of small islands.
Examples
the Florida Keys
Etimology
Clipping of kilogram or kilo.
noun
key (plural keys)
(slang) A kilogram, especially of a recreational drug.
Examples
Synonym: kay
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.
noun
key (plural keys)
Alternative form of quay