How to Use key word in a Sentence

key word

noun
  • That’s the key word with Jones.
    — Parker Gabriel, Denver Post, 27 Sep. 2025
  • Look for milder options, with key words like soap-free or milk.
    — Maddie Aberman, Cosmopolitan, 30 May 2017
  • Here’s a cheat sheet of key words to know when ordering your next meal.
    — Christina Liao, Vogue, 27 Dec. 2024
  • The key word here is blot — don’t scrub, which can push the stain deeper into the fibers.
    — Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Miami Herald, 4 Apr. 2026
  • But the key word, resilience, that’s the mark of a successful team.
    — James Crepea | The Oregonian/oregonlive, oregonlive, 3 Oct. 2021
  • Phillips can impact — which is the key word here — the game in a multitude of ways.
    — David Furones, sun-sentinel.com, 7 Sep. 2021
  • Yet the key word there is progress—the idea that things are indeed getting better, if at a glacial pace.
    — Fortune, 18 July 2019
  • The key words of the night all began with the letter T for the Millers.
    — Indianapolis Star, The Indianapolis Star, 27 Jan. 2024
  • Oliver gives Lilly some key words that make her second-guess the plan.
    — Samantha Agate, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 25 Mar. 2026
  • For the Rangers, that may be the key word to the 2026 season.
    — Evan Grant, Dallas Morning News, 23 Mar. 2026
  • That has been the key word in every game in this series, and this one will be no exception.
    — Jeff Greer, The Courier-Journal, 14 Sep. 2017
  • There have been a few tweaks to meal menus and logistical details, but the key word is tweaks.
    — Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 May 2025
  • The concept gets a little tricky though, where the key word is someone else’s trademark.
    — Jack Greiner, The Enquirer, 18 Aug. 2020
  • Space, of course, is the key word, since the sparsely populated state (pop.
    — Trevor Hughes, USA TODAY, 10 Oct. 2017
  • Potential is the key word here, as most of the girls had little to no training coming in.
    — Jenna Wang, Peoplemag, 30 Jan. 2024
  • The key word, as George notes later in the article, is practice.
    — Kevin Kruse, Forbes, 8 Nov. 2021
  • My key word for this season for Geoffrey is fracture.
    — Dawnie Jefferson, Refinery29, 4 Dec. 2025
  • Most is the key word here and leaves just a little wiggle room where some health upgrades could arrive in the coming weeks.
    — David Phelan, Forbes, 2 Sep. 2021
  • However, reasonable is the key word here.
    — Angelica Leicht, CBS News, 21 Jan. 2026
  • Oliver gives Lilly some key words that force her to second-guess her decision.
    — Samantha Agate, Miami Herald, 25 Mar. 2026
  • Gentle exfoliation helps clear that buildup, but the key word is gentle.
    — Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 24 Apr. 2026
  • Both of those results should — key word, should — help the Hurricanes in their quest to make the 12-team field.
    — Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 7 Dec. 2025
  • One of the key words that Castle uses is none other than efficiency.
    — Dj Siddiqi, Forbes.com, 19 Sep. 2025
  • Threatened is the key word, as capitulations became the norm.
    — Amy Lawrence, New York Times, 1 May 2026
  • Test or refresh your knowledge of key words, terms, and concepts used in discussions and debates about holidays.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, 16 Mar. 2026
  • These key words and the beliefs that underlay them were commonly used and known by colonists in America.
    — Dr. Matthew Warshauer, Hartford Courant, 26 June 2026
  • The key word here, however, is independent.
    — Jenisha Watts, The Atlantic, 23 Mar. 2026
  • And responsibility is the key word.
    — Matt Emma, USA Today, 6 Oct. 2025
  • In the 24 hours that separated one of the ugliest Rangers’ games from the next, the key word was consistency.
    — Dallas News, 12 May 2022
  • Balance is a key word as the lives of Mongolia’s nomads and travelers continue to overlap.
    — Samantha Falewée, Condé Nast Traveler, 25 Sep. 2025

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'key word.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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