1. Pièce métallique qui porte, à une extrémité, le panneton ou des encoches pour actionner le pêne de la serrure et, à l'autre extrémité, un anneau ou une tête pour permettre la manœuvre.
2. Position, point stratégique qui commande l'accès à un lieu : Gibraltar est la clé de la Méditerranée.
3. Ce qui permet d'accéder à quelque chose : Avec ce poste, il détient la clé du pouvoir.
4. Ce qui permet de résoudre quelque chose, de le comprendre : Cet indice me donne la clé du roman.
Synonyme :
solution
5. Dans l’écriture chinoise, élément graphique constituant la partie porteuse de sens d’un caractère et servant à classer ce dernier dans un dictionnaire.
6. En apposition à un nom auquel il est lié ou non par un trait d'union, indique quelque chose ou quelqu'un qui est capital, essentiel, dont tout dépend : Mots-clés.Le personnage clé d'un roman.
Architecture et bâtiment
7. Claveau central d'une plate-bande, d'un arc ou d'une voûte (clé d'arc, clé de voûte). [Les clés de voûtes gothiques sur croisée d'ogives ont souvent reçu un traitement décoratif : rosace, décor figuré et, à la fin du xve s., exubérance des clés pendantes. Ornementées, les clés d'arc de l'architecture classique sont appelées agrafes.]
Bâtiment et menuiserie
8. Clavette en bois dur (chêne ou acacia) enfoncée à force dans la partie femelle d'un assemblage.
9. Petite cheville en bois dur de section rectangulaire, que l'on emploie pour assurer le serrage de certains assemblages.
Fauconnerie
10. Chacun des ongles de derrière, chez un oiseau de proie.
Héraldique
11. Meuble représentant une clé, très fréquent en héraldique.
Linguistique
12. Élément graphique constituant la partie placée à gauche d'un caractère chinois, ayant en général perdu sa signification originelle et servant à classer le caractère et à le trouver dans un dictionnaire.
Mécanique
13. Nom donné à des outils à douille, à œil, à pipe, à ergots, etc., au moyen desquels on serre ou desserre des écrous ou des vis, on tend ou détend le ressort d'un mécanisme, les cordes d'un instrument de musique, etc.
Militaire
14. En cryptographie, convention orale ou écrite nécessaire pour effectuer les opérations de chiffrement et de déchiffrement.
Musique
15. Signe placé au commencement de la portée et qui détermine le nom des notes, ainsi que leur hauteur précise dans l'échelle musicale. (Il y a trois figures de clés : clés de fa, de sol et d'ut.)
16. Dans un instrument à vent, mécanisme qui permet d'ouvrir ou de fermer les trous et donc de modifier la longueur de la colonne d'air vibrante qui donne la hauteur du son.
Sports
17. Dans divers sports de combat (judo, lutte, etc.), prise effectuée avec un bras, tendant à immobiliser l'adversaire.
Travaux publics
18. Partie médiane d'une travée de pont à poutres de hauteur variable.
Expressions avec clé
À la clé,
qui accompagne par voie de conséquence une situation donnée.
Clé de voûte,
partie essentielle d'un ensemble, dont tout dépend.
Clés de saint Pierre,
pouvoir spirituel du Saint-Siège.
Clés d'une ville,
clés qui servaient à ouvrir et à fermer les portes d'une ville et qui symbolisaient la possession de cette ville.
Donner un tour de clé,
fermer.
Fermer à clé,
en parlant d'un local, d'un meuble, d'un coffret, etc., comporter une serrure sur sa porte ou sur la partie qui s'ouvre.
Laisser la clé sur la porte,
la laisser dans la serrure.
Livre, film, etc., à clé,
qui met en scène, sous des noms inventés, des événements, des personnages réels.
Familier. Mettre la clé sous la porte,
déménager furtivement ; faire faillite.
Prendre la clé des champs,
sortir pour aller où on veut, reprendre sa liberté ; s'échapper, s'évader.
Sous clé,
dans un lieu fermé ; en prison : Mettre des papiers sous clé.Les voleurs sont sous clé.
Bâtiment et Menuiserie
Clé de scie,
synonyme de garrot.
Synonyme :
garrot.
Chauffage
Clé de tuyau de poêle,
disque placé à l'intérieur du tuyau et qui sert à régler le tirage.
Chaussure
Clé de forme,
petit coin de bois pour élargir la forme d'une chaussure.
Clé d'embauchoir,
partie centrale de la tige des embauchoirs de bottine ou de botte.
Chemin de fer
Clé de Berne,
clé à tiges carrées, mâle et femelle, qui sert à la manœuvre de différents accessoires des voitures à voyageurs (serrures, couchettes, chauffage, etc.).
Synonyme :
carré
Droit
Fausses clés,
tout instrument ou clé (imitée, trouvée ou volée) utilisé par un voleur pour ouvrir ou forcer une serrure. (L'usage de fausses clés constitue une circonstance aggravante du vol.)
Eaux et assainissement
Clé de barrage,
clé composée d'une tige à évidement carré et d'une traverse mobile, utilisée pour les bouches d'incendie.
Économie
Clé(s) en main,
se dit de la vente d'un appartement, d'une voiture, etc., prêts à être utilisés dès la livraison ; se dit d'un contrat par lequel la conception, la réalisation, la mise en service d'une entreprise ou d'un complexe industriel incombent à un contractant unique.
Équipements ménagers
Clé à sardines,
instrument permettant d'ouvrir le couvercle de certaines boîtes de conserve.
Informatique
Clé d'accès,
suite de caractères servant de code personnalisé donnant l'autorisation d'utiliser un programme, des données, un service informatique, etc.
Clé de protection,
indicatif permettant de réserver l'accès de certaines informations à des utilisateurs autorisés.
Mécanique
Clé à molette, ou clé anglaise,
clé à ouverture variable, dont l'écartement est réglé en actionnant une molette.
Clé dynamométrique,
clé munie d'une réglette graduée sur laquelle est fixé un curseur réglable qui provoque un déclic prévenant l'utilisateur lorsque le couple de serrage correspondant est atteint.
Musique
Clé d'accord,
outil permettant d'accorder un instrument par rotation des chevilles.
Publicité
Annonce à clé,
placard publicitaire comportant un signe distinct permettant l'identification du support dans lequel il est paru et l'évaluation de son rendement.
[kle], quelle que soit la graphie (le f de clef ne se prononce pas).
ORTHOGRAPHE
Les deux graphies sont correctes, mais clé tend de plus en plus à remplacer clef dans l'usage contemporain.
Employé comme épithète, peut s'écrire avec ou sans trait d'union : mot clé ou mot-clé, poste clé ou poste-clé, secteur clé ou secteur-clé, etc.
remarque Les plus fréquents de ces composés tendent à être perçus comme formant une seule unité et s'écrivent plutôt avec trait d'union que sans. C'est le cas notamment pour mot-clé et poste-clé.
Clé en main = vendu prêt à être utilisé, peut s'écrire avec clé au singulier ou au pluriel. Usine, maison, voiture clé (ou clés) en main.
Citations avec clé
Maurice Maeterlinck (Gand 1862-Nice 1949) Il n'y a rien de plus beau qu'une clef, tant qu'on ne sait pas ce qu'elle ouvre. Aglavaine et Sélysette, Fasquelle
Quelle est la signification du préfixe « sym » dans « symphonie » ou « symbiose » ?
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