keynote
pronunciation
How to pronounce keynote in British English:
UK [ˈki:nəʊt]
How to pronounce keynote in American English:
US [ˈkinoʊt]
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- Noun:
- the principal theme in a speech or literary work
- a fundamental or central idea
- (music) the first note of a diatonic scale
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- Verb:
- set the keynote of
- give the keynote address to (an audience)
Word Origin
- keynote (n.)
- also key-note, "lowest note of a musical scale, basis of a scale," 1776, from key (n.1) in sense of "musical scale" + note (n.). Figurative sense of "leading idea" is from 1783; keynote address is 1905, American English.
Example
- 1. It is all good stuff , but its keynote is timidity .
- 2. Buckminster fuller would , of course , be the keynote speaker .
- 3. But mr sarkozy 's keynote address did reflect the ideological confusion among western leaders .
- 4. A speech in abu dhabi , capital of the united arab emirates , was touted as the keynote of his seven-country tour .
- 5. Future of the pharmaceutical industry - future pharma and health trends conference keynote for institute for clinical research ( uk ) .