key
Word family adjectivekeyedkeylessnounkeyboardkeyboarderkeyboardistkeybuglekeycardkeyholekeyhole surgerykeylinekeynotekeypadkeypalkey ringkey signaturekeystonekeystrokekeystrokingkeywaykeywordkeyworkerkeyverbkeypunch
Daily life, Music, Technology, Geography, Computers
key1 /kiː/ ●●● S1 W2 noun [countableC] → quay, cay1 
lock 锁D a small specially shaped piece of metal that you put into a lock and turn in order to lock or unlock a door, start a car etc 钥匙
lock 锁D a small specially shaped piece of metal that you put into a lock and turn in order to lock or unlock a door, start a car etc 钥匙house/car keys
I lost my house keys.
我把家里的钥匙弄丢了。
A bunch of keys hung from his belt.
他的皮带上挂着一串钥匙。
key to
I can lend you a spare key to the store until you get one cut (=made).
在你配好钥匙之前，我可以借给你一把商店的备用钥匙。
Don’t say ‘the key of’ something. Say the key to something.
→ master key不要说 ‘the key of’ something. 而要说 the key to something.
2 IMPORTANT PART 重要的部分the key the part of a plan, action etc that will make it possible for it to succeed 关键
the key to
Working well as a team is the key to success.
良好的团队合作是成功的关键。
a discovery that may hold the key to our understanding of the universe
也许能开启我们认识宇宙之门的一个发现
Examples from the Corpus
hold the key• As James Brady knows, the patient himself holds the key to recovery.• Our journeys on the whiteboard suggest that it holds the key to our concepts of beauty.• Hidden layers hold the key to more complex computations.• Some threatened species have special qualities or abilities and may hold the key to undiscovered benefits.• The 38-year-old Berkeley grad may hold the keys to the engine.• Together or separately, the two of them may hold the key to power after the election.• Nor was the thought that he alone might hold the key to the mystery the sole component in his strangely elated state.• Police believe must hold the key to tracing the killers.
3 computer 计算机APMT the buttons that you press on a computer keyboard to operate the computer 〔计算机键盘上的〕键
Press the ‘Escape’ key to exit.
按退出键退出。
hot key/shortcut key (=a special key on a computer, that does specific things) 热键/快捷键
4 music 音乐
a) [usually plural] the wooden or metal parts that you press on a piano and some wind instruments in order to play them 〔钢琴或某些管乐器上的〕键
piano keys
钢琴键
b) a scale of notes that begins with one particular note, or the quality of sound this scale has 〔音乐的〕调
→5 see picture at 见图 piano1 a tune in the key of A minor
一段A小调的曲子
5. map/drawing 地图/图EXPLAIN a list of the signs, colours etc used on a map or technical drawing etc that explains what they mean 图例，符号说明
6. test 测试TCANSWER/REPLY the printed answers to a test or set of questions in a book 答案，题解
7 island 岛 [usually plural]SG a small flat island, especially one that is part of a group near the coast 〔尤指靠近海岸的群岛中的〕小岛，低岛
the Florida Keys
佛罗里达群岛
n COLLOCATIONS
ADJECTIVES/NOUN + key
a spare key (=an extra key)
Never hide your spare key under the doormat.
door key
I’ll get a new door key cut for you.
car keys
She left her car keys on the hall table.
house keys
I’ve lost my house keys.
the front/back door key
She felt in her pocket for the front door key.
the ignition key (=the key that starts a car or engine)
phrasesSam turned the ignition key and drove slowly away.
a bunch/set of keys (=a group of keys kept together)
He took out a huge bunch of keys and unlocked the door.
the key to a door/house/cupboard (=the key that opens a door/house/cupboard)
verbsHas anyone seen the key to the garage door?
put a key in a lock/the door
I put the key in the lock, but it wouldn’t turn.
insert a key formal (=put it in a lock)
She inserted the key into the lock.
turn a key
He climbed into his car and turned the key.
cut a key (=make one)
Could you get a key cut for me?
jangle your keys (=move them so they make a ringing sound)
He walked off down the corridor, jangling his keys.
a key unlocks/opens something
The largest key unlocks the front door.
a key turns
We heard the key turn in the lock.
Examples from the Corpus
key• Secondly, the computer keyboard has many additional keys which are used to alter the function of the alpha-numeric keys.• Type in your PIN code, then press the ENTER key.• Then she saw a little glass table with three legs, and on the top of it was a very small gold key.• a minor key• My plastic key wouldn't open my hotel room.• Any set of search keys for a document can be described as a document profile.• These socialist writings showed me the key to my environment.
spare key• It had temporarily slipped my mind, but some one did have a spare key some while ago.• Leave a spare key with a trustworthy neighbour.• So this was his spare key, the one he kept at the Vicarage.• Remember that I had always intended to leave spare key with the Twills next door but never got round to it.• Do you leave spare keys in hiding places outside the house?• Eventually, the spare key was found and they were released from the clutches of the car.• Soon she took my visits for granted and I was given the spare key to let myself in the door.
key2 ●●○ S3 W2 adjectiveadj [no comparative]
1 IMPORTANTvery important or necessary 至关重要的；必不可少的；关键的
→ low-key China’s support is key to the success of the coalition.
中国的支持是联盟成功的关键。
key factor/points/questions etc 关键的因素/论点/问题等
The president makes all the key decisions on foreign policy.
外交政策上的所有重要决定都由总统作出。
key role/player/figure etc (=one with a lot of influence on a result) 重要角色/选手/人物等
► see thesaurus at important, main The show has been hit by the departure of key personnel.
由于主要人员离去，演出受到了影响。
n COLLOCATIONS
nouns
a key factor (=a very important factor)
A key factor in starting any business is its location.
a key element/feature/component (=a very important part)
Advertising is a key element in the success of a product.
a key role
Sanders played a key role in the team’s winning season.
a key area
What are the key areas of economic policy?
a key issue/question/point
The environment became a key issue during the election.
a key figure (=a key person)
She was a key figure in the election campaign.
a key player
He won’t leave key players out of the team.
a key witness (=someone who can give important information about a crime)
She will be a key witness in the murder trial.
a key decision
Women made most of the key decisions about how money was spent in the household.
a key word (=an important or useful word)
Once you know the key words, you can make your own sentence.
Examples from the Corpus
key• From the early 1960s the party had seen the issue of civil liberties as a key area of agitation.• Transport and communications are key areas of the economy.• the area's key businesses• A key card numbering the various positions was mounted on the top of the tachistoscope.• Communication is key for the newspaper team.• A law on salaries which was passed on Dec. 26,1989, was deemed to be of key importance.• Education is likely to be a key issue in the forthcoming election.• We don't have much time, so let's concentrate on the key issues.• He would dispose of it and a key item of evidence would be gone for good.• What are the key leadership skills?• The system comprises three key modules, which are centred on the Network Control System Console.• The key person in this project will be the design manager.• He held a key position in the Bush administration.• Many of the key terms and debates that take place throughout the book are introduced.• Laws are key to maintaining an orderly society.
key role/player/figure etc• Winter had wanted to introduce a budgetary control system based on monthly management accounts with the emphasis on key figures.• Thus, product prices play a key role in determining the expenditure patterns of consumers.• Those visiting the current exhibit will learn that black churches and their leaders played key roles in local history.• Lucia Walker is one of the key figures in the development of contact improvisation in this country.• The project high-lighted the key role of the expert advisors which are used by farm managers in undertaking their roles.• Mr Strine also gives readers excuses for his losses, such as injuries to key players or even the weather.• We don't have one key player that makes big plays every week.• Social workers have a key role to play when some one suspects that a child is being abused.
key3 ●●○ verb [transitiveT]
1 American EnglishAmE informal if you key a win for your team, you help it win a game because you play very well 成为〔获胜〕的关键
Abdul keyed the game with three touchdowns.
阿布杜尔三次触地得分，是赢得比赛的关键。
2. British EnglishBrETIC to prepare a surface so that a covering such as paint will stick to it 〔为涂油漆等〕将…的表面处理好
3 key something ↔ in phrasal verbphr v TDto put information into a computer or other machine, using buttons or a keyboard 〔用键盘等〕输入，键入
Key in your password and press ‘Return’.
键入密码，按回车键。
Examples from the Corpus
key in• And that is the key distinction.• The key factor then in a conflict of obligations between profession and employer is the librarian's obligations to family and career.• The key word in doing this is attitude.• In other words, the division of labor is also a key factor in the development of new technology.• Conversely, the lack of adequate financial planning is often a key element in the failure of many business enterprises.• When they reached the apartment's front door they heard the key turn in the lock on the far side.• The book explains in detail the 20 key points examined in the test.
4 key something to something phrasal verbphr v American EnglishAmE
a) EQUALto make or change a system so that it works well with something else 使…适合于
The daycare hours are keyed to the needs of working parents.
日间托儿服务的时间根据上班家长的需要而定。
b) if the level, price, or value of something is keyed to something else, it is related to it and they rise and fall at the same time 将〔水平、价格或价值〕与…相联系[挂钩]
→ keyed up Pensions are keyed to the rate of inflation.
养老金和通货膨胀率挂钩。
Examples from the Corpus
key to • What sources of power can groups and key individuals bring to bear on the budgetary process? 4.• She'd like to see a key worker allocated to each patient and families made more fully informed about treatment.• Never leave keys for intruders to find and use.• It's understood that the accountancy firm has already lost several key people to Freeserve.• The key is to get the temperature to 155 to 160 F to kill any harmful microorganisms.• The key is to match the person to the job and viceversa.• The gunman also took a set of keys needed to operate the apartment complex elevator.• Here are some key rules to remember when writing numbers: Write out numbers under eleven.
Examples from the Corpus
key• Rollins keyed a 98-89 victory for the Hawks.• But it is also possible that they were keying into an actual human possibility.• Breaking it, if it can be found, produces the effect of keying out the engram.
From Longman Business Dictionary
keykey1 /kiː/ noun [countableC]COMPUTING
1a part of a computer with a letter, number etc on it that you press with your fingers to make it work
Press any key to continue.
2a/the key to something the part of a plan, arrangement etc that is the most important and which everything else depends on
The key to customer satisfaction is quick access to those best placed to resolve issues quickly.
If managers are free to concentrate on the core business, this could be a key to economicsuccess in the difficult times ahead.
keykey2 adjectiveadj
1very important or necessary
the impact of foreign investment onkey industries
The key elements of Japanese management methods can be applied to Western organisations.
A key factor in these companies’ success is knowing their customers’ preferences.
key to
Technical alliances between companies are key to putting pressure on other cable competitors.
2COMMERCE key actor/player/mover a person or company that is very important and influential
The key players involved in the change must be identified and their commitment to the change obtained.
Employers are key actors within industrial relations.
keykey3 verb
FINANCE be keyed to something if the level, price, value etc of something is keyed to something else, it is related to it and rises and falls with it
In many cases, brokers’ commissions are keyed to share prices.
The agreement requires banks to hold a certain amount of capital, keyed to the riskiness of loans.
→ key something → in
Old English cæg