keyhole

[ kee-hohl ]
See synonyms for keyhole on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a hole for inserting a key in a lock, especially one in the shape of a circle with a rectangle having a width smaller than the diameter of the circle projecting from the bottom.

  2. Also called key. Basketball. the area at each end of the court that is bounded by two lines extending from the end line parallel to and equidistant from the sidelines and terminating in a circle around the foul line.

adjective
  1. extremely private or intimate, especially with reference to information gained as if by peeping through a keyhole.

  2. snooping and intrusive: a keyhole investigator.

Origin of keyhole

1
First recorded in 1585–95; key1 + hole

Words Nearby keyhole

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use keyhole in a sentence

  • This week, Stephen King published his 51st novel, The Wind Through the keyhole, the latest in his Dark Tower series.

  • A peek through the keyhole on its website reveals a moving line of classic and contemporary nude images.

    Nude Art Mag Riles Middle East | Betwa Sharma | September 3, 2010 | THE DAILY BEAST
  • Mumbling helps audiences "feel like they're peeking in the keyhole," Batson says.

    Mumbling Wins Oscars! | Zachary Pincus-Roth | March 3, 2010 | THE DAILY BEAST
  • He looked at it through a keyhole, as it were—the extent was large yet detailed, the picture distant yet very clearly focussed.

    The Wave | Algernon Blackwood
  • Kneeling down, he peered into the keyhole, holding the electric torch close beside his face and chewing industriously.

    Dope | Sax Rohmer
  • And all the while the real "me" is snugly lying here in the green box, peeping through the keyhole, on the watch for the postman.

    Prison Memoirs of an Anarchist | Alexander Berkman
  • Jehosophat wished he were as small as Hop-o'-my-Thumb, so that he could creep through the keyhole and never be seen at all.

    Seven O'Clock Stories | Robert Gordon Anderson
  • He stooped down and peeped through the keyhole, and immediately grew pale with anger.

    Chicot the Jester | Alexandre Dumas, Pere

British Dictionary definitions for keyhole

keyhole

/ (ˈkiːˌhəʊl) /


noun
  1. an aperture in a door or a lock case through which a key may be passed to engage the lock mechanism

  2. any small aperture resembling a keyhole in shape or function

  1. a transient column of vapour or plasma formed during the welding or cutting of materials, using high energy beams, such as lasers

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012