keyhole

English

A doorknob with a keyhole.

Etymology

From key +‎ hole.

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈkiˌhoʊl/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Noun

keyhole (plural keyholes)

1. The hole in a lock where the key is inserted and turns.
2. Any small opening resembling the hole for a key in shape or function; especially, one that gives a vista of, or access to, a space beyond.
   2. A small incision through which surgical instruments can reach into an anatomic space beyond.

      Coordinate term: buttonhole

3. A circle cut out of a garment as a decorative effect, typically at the front or back neckline of a dress.
4. (carpentry) A hole or excavation in beams intended to be joined together, to receive the key that fastens them.
5. (engineering) A mortise for a key or cotter.
6. (lasers) A transient column of vapor or plasma formed when using high energy beams, such as lasers, for welding or cutting.

   laser keyhole welding

   keyhole plasma

7. (metallurgy) A welding method in which a hole forms in the surface immediately ahead of the puddle in the direction of welding. The hole is filled as the weld progresses.
8. (basketball) The free-throw lane together with the circle surrounding the free-throw line; key.
9. (astronomy) A gravitational keyhole.

Derived terms

• keyhole arch
• keyhole limpet
• keyhole limpet hemocyanin
• keyhole sand dollar
• keyhole saw
• keyhole surgery
• keyhole urchin
• six-holed keyhole urchin

Translations

a hole to lock/unlock with a key

• Armenian: բանալու անցք (banalu ancʻkʻ)
• Bulgarian: ключалка (bg) f (ključalka)
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 鎖匙窿 / 锁匙窿 (so² si⁴ lung^4-1)

  Mandarin: 鎖孔 / 锁孔 (zh) (suǒkǒng), 鑰匙孔 / 钥匙孔 (yàoshi kǒng)

• Czech: klíčová dírka f
• Danish: nøglehul n
• Dutch: sleutelgat (nl)
• Esperanto: ŝlosiltruo
• Finnish: avaimenreikä (fi)
• French: trou de la serrure (fr) m
• Galician: pechadura f, fechadura f, ferrollo (gl) m
• Georgian: კლიტის ჭუჭრუტანა (ḳliṭis č̣uč̣ruṭana)
• German: Schlüsselloch (de) n
• Greek: κλειδαρότρυπα (el) f (kleidarótrypa)
• Greenlandic: matuersaaserfik
• Hebrew: חור המנעול m (khor haman'úl)
• Hungarian: kulcslyuk (hu)
• Icelandic: skráargat n
• Indonesian: lubang kunci (id)
• Irish: poll eochrach m
• Italian: toppa (it) f, buco della serratura m
• Japanese: 鍵穴 (ja) (かぎあな, kagiana)
• Khmer: please add this translation if you can
• Korean: 열쇠 구멍 (yeolsoe gumeong)
• Latin: claustellum n
• Luxembourgish: Schlëssellach n
• Macedonian: клучалка f (klučalka)
• Malay: lubang kunci
• Mongolian: цоожны нүх (coožny nüx)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: nøkkelhull n

• Persian: سوراخ کلید (surâx-e kelid)
• Plautdietsch: Schlätelloch n
• Polish: dziurka od klucza f
• Portuguese: fechadura (pt) f, tranca (pt) f
• Romanian: gaura cheii (ro) f
• Russian: замо́чная сква́жина (ru) f (zamóčnaja skvážina)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: кључаоница f, кључница f

  Roman: ključaonica (sh) f, ključnica f

• Slovak: kľúčová dierka f
• Slovene: ključanica f
• Spanish: ojo (de la cerradura) m, bocallave f
• Swedish: nyckelhål (sv) n
• Tagalog: susian, butas-susian
• Tajik: сӯрохи калид (sürox-i kalid)
• Thai: รูกุญแจ
• Tibetan: ལྡེ་ཁུང (lde khung)
• Turkish: anahtar deliği
• Ukrainian: за́мкова щі́ли́на f (zámkova ščílýna)
• Vietnamese: lỗ khoá
• Volapük: kikahog (vo)

Verb

keyhole (third-person singular simple present keyholes, present participle keyholing, simple past and past participle keyholed)

1. (firearms) To strike a target after wobbling in flight so that the long axis of the bullet does not follow the line of flight, typically due to insufficient spin resulting from the rifling in the barrel.

Derived terms

• keyhole neckline
• keyhole surgery
• keyhole wound