Key or quay?
key is a noun meaning “An object designed to open and close a lock or to activate or deactivate…”; quay is a noun meaning “A stone or concrete structure on navigable water used for loading and unloading…”. They sound the same (/kiː/). In written English (wordfreq, 2021 data) key is about 72 times as common as quay.
What is the difference between key and quay?
| key | quay | |
|---|---|---|
| Part of speech | noun, adjective, verb | noun, verb, adjective, adverb |
| Meaning | An object designed to open and close a lock or to activate or deactivate something, especially a length of metal inserted into a narrow opening on the lock to… A card or fob that electronically signals a lock to open Indispensable, supremely important | A stone or concrete structure on navigable water used for loading and unloading vessels; a wharf To land or tie up at a quay or similar structure, especially used in the phrase "quay up" |
| Example | This key is to the backdoor | moor up in the quay |
| Forms | keys | quays |
| Pronunciation | /kiː/ /ki/ | /kiː/ /keɪ/ |
| In writing | 132 times per million words | 1.8 times per million words |
Sources: key and quay in the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Every current meaning of key and quay
key
- 1
An object designed to open and close a lock or to activate or deactivate something, especially a length of metal inserted into a narrow opening on the lock to which it is matched (keyed)
This key is to the backdoor
- 2
Indispensable, supremely important
He is the key player on his soccer team
- 3
To fit (a lock) with a key
- 4
One of a string of small islands
the Florida Keys
- 5
slangA kilogram, especially of a recreational drug
- 6
Alternative form of quay
- 7
A key position player (a tall forward or defender)
- 8
A card or fob that electronically signals a lock to open
My hotel room key is a card
quay
- 1
A stone or concrete structure on navigable water used for loading and unloading vessels; a wharf
moor up in the quay
- 2
To land or tie up at a quay or similar structure, especially used in the phrase "quay up"
- 3
Alternative spelling of qway (“far”)
- 4
Alternative spelling of qway (“far”)
Source: the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); obsolete, archaic, dialect and rare senses left out.
Which is more common, key or quay?
key appears 132 times per million words; quay 1.8 times per million words.
key 132 times per million wordsquay 1.8 times per million words
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).