noun
adj
verb
adv

Textual thesaurus for "key"

(adj) cardinal, central, primal, fundamental

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) keystone, headstone

the central building block at the top of an arch or vault


(noun) winder

mechanical device used to wind another device that is driven by a spring (as a clock)


(noun) tonality

any of 24 major or minor diatonic scales that provide the tonal framework for a piece of music


(noun) paint

(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


(noun) cay, Florida key

a coral reef off the southern coast of Florida


(noun) Key, Francis Scott Key

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)


(noun) key fruit, samara

a winged often one-seed indehiscent fruit as of the ash or elm or maple


(verb) discover, distinguish, describe, identify, key out, name

identify as in botany or biology, for example