keyword

or key word

[ kee-wurd ]

/ ˈkiˌwɜrd /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR keyword ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a word that serves as a key, as to the meaning of another word, a sentence, passage, or the like.

a word used to encipher or decipher a cryptogram, as a pattern for a transposition procedure or the basis for a complex substitution.

Also called catchword. Library Science. a significant or memorable word or term in the title, abstract, or text of a document or other item being indexed, used as the index entry.

Digital Technology. a word used to classify or organize digital content, or to facilitate an online search for information: Search the database for the keyword “Ireland.”

Nearby words

keystone species, keystone state, keystoner, keystroke, keyway, keyword, keyword indexing, keyword stuffing, keziah, kg, kg-m

Origin of keyword

First recorded in 1855–60; key¹ + word

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for keyword

Angwin notes that keyword searches are increasingly tracked.
They Want to Know Everything About You|Jake Whitney|March 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
When you send a tweet, Google a keyword, or stream a Netflix movie, you are harvesting what Shannon sowed.
Drowning in Beeps|Nicholas Carr|March 1, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Their version of journalism is to focus on things like “keyword density” and search-engine optimization.
AOL's Tricky HuffPo Marriage|Dan Lyons|February 7, 2011|DAILY BEAST
But, no, the keyword stands in sharpest contrast to these surroundings.
Quiet Talks on Prayer|S. D. (Samuel Dickey) Gordon

It is not likely that the composer of such an ingenious cryptogram would leave the keyword to guesswork.
The Mystery of the Downs|John R. Watson
No one in the world without his square of letters and without the keyword can read this message.
Uncle Sam Detective|William Atherton Du Puy
What is a keyword for the opportunities of the Intermediate Age?
Training the Teacher|A. F. Schauffler
The word with which you parted so lightly is the keyword of all life.
The Blue Flower, and Others|Henry van Dyke

British Dictionary definitions for keyword

keyword

/ (ˈkiːˌwɜːd) /

noun

a word used as a key to a code

any significant word or phrase, esp a word used to describe the contents of a document

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

Word Origin and History for keyword

keyword

also key-word, 1807, from key (n.1) + word (n.). Originally in reference to codes and ciphers.

keyword

or key word

noun

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of keyword

Examples from the Web for keyword

British Dictionary definitions for keyword

keyword

noun

Word Origin and History for keyword

keyword