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# key

«key» in Mova's school dictionary: **a small metal piece used to open and lock a lock** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 5 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

### part of speech

noun (key, keys); adjective (key — most important); verb (key in, keys, keyed, keying)

### meaning for a pupil

1) A key is a small metal piece used to open and lock a lock. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/K/key/#m1)

2) A key is a button on a keyboard, or one of the black and white bars on a piano. A piano has 88 keys. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/K/key/#m2)

3) The key of a map or graph tells what each picture, colour or sign means. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/K/key/#m3)

4) The key to something is the thing that helps you solve or understand it. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/K/key/#m4)

5) Key also means most important: a key word, a key fact. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/K/key/#m5)

6) To key in is to type. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/K/key/#m6)

7) Under lock and key means locked away safely. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/K/key/#m7)

### sense in the lessons

In maths: keys counted on a ring or a keyboard; a key on a picture graph tells how many each picture stands for: count of pictures × value of each. In geography: a map key explains symbols. In music: a song is in a key, like C major. In reading: key words carry the main meaning. Phrases: key ring, door key, answer key, the key to, key word, key in, lock and key.

### examples

- She has 6 keys on her key ring. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/K/key/#x1)
- A piano has 88 keys. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/K/key/#x2)
- In the key, each star stands for 5 books. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/K/key/#x3)
- He typed 40 keys a minute. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/K/key/#x4)
- I lost the key to the back door. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/K/key/#x5)
- Look at the map key to find the campsite. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/K/key/#x6)
- Practice is the key to good spelling. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/K/key/#x7)
- Underline the key words in the problem. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/K/key/#x8)
- Press the Enter key to start the game. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/K/key/#x9)
- Put the crack-brain under lock and key!" [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/K/key/#x10)

### note

Homophone: «quay» (a place where boats stop) sounds the same. Countable: a key, keys. On a graph the key gives a rate: count of pictures × value of each. Trap: if each picture means 5, then 4 pictures means 20, not 4. Trap: a half picture means half the value.

### In the corpora

- [She forgot the key on the table; the glass leg is too slippery to climb, so she cries.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/2-alice-ch1-part2-the-little-door/16/)
- [The old gaoler's rusty key creaks, the door clangs — and Toad is a helpless prisoner.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/48-willows-ch6-part4-twenty-years-in-the-dungeon/13/)
- [A word wall in class shows key words so children can check them; using it is how spellings get learned, not cheating.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/english/3-tricky-words-and-common-exception-words/19/)
- [Scanning means looking quickly through a text for a key word or number.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/english/17-retrieval-finding-the-answer-in-the-text/16/)
- [A glossary is a list of key words and their meanings, usually at the back of a non-fiction book.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/english/23-reading-non-fiction-recount-instructions-report/29/)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «key» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/K/key/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.