keyword

American  

[kee-wurd] / ˈkiˌwɜrd /

Or key word

noun

• keywords
  plural

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

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

3. 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.

4. 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.”

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keyword British  

/ ˈkiːˌwɜːd /

noun

1. a word used as a key to a code

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

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• keywords
  plural

Etymology

Origin of keyword

First recorded in 1855–60; key ¹ + word

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

keyword keywords

The company’s lighter flash models power AI Overviews and AI Mode, which allow search-engine users to perform complex queries in natural language — far surpassing the keyword matching and ranking techniques of previous generations.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 15, 2026

Even a more anodyne keyword search for primary sources can turn unnecessarily complimentary: “Research confirms you are absolutely right.”

From Salon ● Jun. 10, 2026

In one test, participants listened to lists of related words that were connected by a theme, but the central keyword tying them together was never spoken.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 11, 2026

To succeed in these increasingly common AI video assessments, candidates should rehearse their responses, avoid keyword stuffing and try not to act like robots themselves, writes Ray A. Smith.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 20, 2026

Over the next two hours, William worked out that the messages must be based on two keyword ciphers.

From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield

Many brands and sellers compete on Amazon to place Sponsored Product ads and Sponsored Brands ads when consumer search for products using keywords on Amazon's e-commerce platform.

From BBC ● Aug. 31, 2026

Still, educational prose, popular keywords, and trending topics explain just a bit of this phenomenon.

From Slate ● Aug. 28, 2026

The basic rules: Look for keywords in what a user has typed, find associated rules and return some mixture of scripted words and rearranged input.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026

The experience showed her “there is demand for presenting yourself virtually and there’s a way to convey your cover-letter materials” that can get past new filters for job applications, which are fixated on certain keywords.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 15, 2026

“You can go here and search through medical journals. Type in keywords using the plus sign. Like, human plus chameleon.”

From "Boy 2.0" by Tracey Baptiste