keystroke

noun

"keystroke" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“keystroke” is uncommon English (frequency #69,998 among 9,255 “K” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#69,998
frequency rank, English
9,255
“K” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The act of pressing an input key; a keypress on a computer keyboard or a typewriter, or a similar input device.

Key facts for keystroke
PropertyValue
Headwordkeystroke
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters9
Frequency rank#69,998
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “keystroke” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). keystroke lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

keystroke is uncommon English at frequency #69,998 among 9,255 “K” headwords, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "The act of pressing an input key; a keypress on a computer keyboard or a typewriter, or a similar input device.".

keystroke doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From key + stroke. The correct English form is keystroke, spelled K-E-Y-S-T-R-O-K-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    The act of pressing an input key; a keypress on a computer keyboard or a typewriter, or a similar input device.

Etymology

From key + stroke.

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "keystroke"?
"keystroke" is spelled K-E-Y-S-T-R-O-K-E.
What does "keystroke" mean?
As a noun, "keystroke" means: The act of pressing an input key; a keypress on a computer keyboard or a typewriter, or a similar input device.
What is the origin of the word "keystroke"?
From key + stroke. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “keystroke”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is K-E-Y-S-T-R-O-K-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words

Other uncommon English words near this rank

Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list