keynote
keynote Lexical Profile
keynote Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A primary speech or address delivered at a conference, convention, or public assembly to establish the central theme and set the tone for the event.
"The chief executive delivered an inspiring keynote at the annual technology conference."
A prevailing tone, central idea, or fundamental principle in a literary work, policy, or course of action.
"Fiscal responsibility remained the keynote of the administration's economic policy."
The first and lowest note of a diatonic musical scale, upon which a key or system of tones is founded.
"The symphony resolves powerfully back to its original keynote in the final measure."
• verb
To deliver the primary speech or address at (a conference, convention, or formal gathering).
"A Nobel Prize winner was invited to keynote the international medical symposium."
To serve as the central theme, prevailing tone, or guiding principle of (something).
"Environmental sustainability keynoted the architectural firm's latest urban renewal proposal."
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Coined in the late 18th century as a musical term combining 'key' (in the sense of a harmonic scale) and 'note'; its figurative extension to a central theme or opening address emerged in the mid-19th century.