key

/ki:/

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The word "key" can be understood in several ways, and it has both noun and verb forms. Let's break it down for you!

Noun Meanings:

1. Access Tool: A key is a small metal object used to open locks. For example, "I need my key to unlock the door."
2. Essential Element: It can refer to something essential or very important. For example, "Education is the key to success."
3. Musical Context: In music, a key is a set of notes that forms the basis for a piece of music. For example, "This song is in the key of C major."
4. Basketball Term: In basketball, the "key" refers to the area near the basket, where players often try to score. For example, "He made a shot from the top of the key."
5. Map Legend: A key can also mean a list that explains symbols on a map or chart. For example, "Look at the key to understand the map better."

Verb Meanings:

1. To Adjust: To "key" can mean to adjust something to match a certain standard or condition. For example, "We need to key our project to the latest guidelines."
2. To Identify: In biology, to key means to identify a species based on characteristics. For example, "We can key the plants using this guide."

Advanced Usage:

• The phrase "key player" refers to someone crucial to a team's success. For example, "She is a key player in our project."
• "Keynote speaker" refers to a main speaker at a conference, usually someone who sets the theme.

Word Variants:

• Keyed (adjective): This can mean that something is locked or secured. For example, "The doors are keyed for security."
• Keying (verb): The action of adjusting to a certain standard. For example, "He is keying his report to the audience's understanding."

Different Meanings:

• "Key" as a Coral Reef: In some contexts, especially in geography, a "key" can refer to a small island, like the Florida Keys.
• "Key" in Law: It can refer to important legal terms or principles.

Synonyms:

• For the noun form: Essential, crucial, vital.
• For the access tool: Lock opener, pass.

Idioms:

• "Key to the kingdom": This idiom means having access to something very important or powerful.
• "Key player": Refers to someone who plays an essential role in a situation or organization.

Phrasal Verbs:

• "Key in": This means to input information into a computer or device. For example, "Please key in your password."

Example Sentences:

1. Noun: "I lost my house key, so I can't get inside." 2.

Academic

Adjective

1. serving as an essential component
   • a cardinal rule
   • the central cause of the problem
   • an example that was fundamental to the argument
   • computers are fundamental to modern industrial structure

Noun

1. a lever (as in a keyboard) that actuates a mechanism when depressed
2. the central building block at the top of an arch or vault
3. mechanical device used to wind another device that is driven by a spring (as a clock)
4. a generic term for any device whose possession entitles the holder to a means of access
   • a safe-deposit box usually requires two keys to open it
5. a list of words or phrases that explain symbols or abbreviations
6. a list of answers to a test
   • some students had stolen the key to the final exam
7. (basketball) a space (including the foul line) in front of the basket at each end of a basketball court; usually painted a different color from the rest of the court
   • he hit a jump shot from the top of the key
   • he dominates play in the paint
8. a coral reef off the southern coast of Florida
9. United States lawyer and poet who wrote a poem after witnessing the British attack on Baltimore during the War of 1812; the poem was later set to music and entitled `The Star-Spangled Banner' (1779-1843)
10. a winged often one-seed indehiscent fruit as of the ash or elm or maple
11. a kilogram of a narcotic drug
    • they were carrying two keys of heroin
12. any of 24 major or minor diatonic scales that provide the tonal framework for a piece of music
13. pitch of the voice
    • he spoke in a low key
14. something crucial for explaining
    • the key to development is economic integration
15. metal device shaped in such a way that when it is inserted into the appropriate lock the lock's mechanism can be rotated

Verb

1. harmonize with or adjust to
   • key one's actions to the voters' prevailing attitude
2. regulate the musical pitch of
3. vandalize a car by scratching the sides with a key
   • His new Mercedes was keyed last night in the parking lot
4. provide with a key
   • We were keyed after the locks were changed in the building
5. identify as in botany or biology, for example

Synonyms

• cardinal
• central
• fundamental
• primal
• keystone
• headstone
• winder
• paint
• cay
• Florida key
• Key
• Francis Scott Key
• samara
• key fruit
• tonality
• identify
• discover
• key out
• distinguish
• describe
• name