• noun:   metal device shaped in such a way that when it is inserted into the appropriate lock the lock's mechanism can be rotated
• noun:   a lever that actuates a mechanism when depressed
• noun:   pitch of the voice

  Example: "He spoke in a low key"

• noun:   something crucial for explaining

  Example: "The key to development is economic integration"

• noun:   a generic term for any device whose possession entitles the holder to a means of access

  Example: "A safe-deposit box usually requires two keys to open it"

• noun:   a list of words or phrases that explain symbols or abbreviations
• noun:   a list of answers to a test

  Example: "Some students had stolen the key to the final exam"

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

  Example: "He hit a jump shot from the top of the key"

• noun:   a coral reef off the southern coast of Florida
• noun:   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:   a kilogram of a narcotic drug

  Example: "They were carrying two keys of heroin"

• noun:   the central building block at the top of an arch or vault
• noun:   mechanical device used to wind another device that is driven by a spring (as a clock)
• noun:   a winged often one-seed indehiscent fruit as of the ash or elm or maple
• verb:   provide with a key

  Example: "We were keyed after the locks were changed in the building"

• verb:   harmonize with or adjust to

  Example: "Key one's actions to the voters' prevailing attitude"

• verb:   regulate the musical pitch of
• verb:   vandalize a car by scratching the sides with a key

  Example: "His new Mercedes was keyed last night in the parking lot"

• verb:   identify as in botany or biology, for example
• adjective:   effective; producing a desired effect
• adjective:   serving as an essential component
• name:  A surname (common: 1 in 6666 families; popularity rank in the U.S.: #796)

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