skeleton key
noun
plural skeleton keys
: a key with a large part of the bit filed away to enable it to open low quality locks as a master key
called also passkey
Examples of skeleton key in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Mounk pointed to this decline in trust as a sort of skeleton key for understanding the Trump vibe shift.
—
Matt Robison, Newsweek, 21 Nov. 2024
Art and music and film and dance and so many other pieces of work where people just put their blood and guts into it, those things have been skeleton keys for me.
—Lily Moayeri, SPIN, 19 Aug. 2024
Stem cells can divide and renew themselves over a long period of time and are kind of like a skeleton key.
—Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 1 Aug. 2024
First, Microsoft should not have had a single skeleton key that, when inevitably stolen, could be used to forge access to different customers’ private communications.
—Kevin Purdy, Ars Technica, 27 July 2023
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Matt Robison, Newsweek, 21 Nov. 2024
Art and music and film and dance and so many other pieces of work where people just put their blood and guts into it, those things have been skeleton keys for me.
—Lily Moayeri, SPIN, 19 Aug. 2024
Stem cells can divide and renew themselves over a long period of time and are kind of like a skeleton key.
—Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 1 Aug. 2024
First, Microsoft should not have had a single skeleton key that, when inevitably stolen, could be used to forge access to different customers’ private communications.
—Kevin Purdy, Ars Technica, 27 July 2023
See all Example Sentences for skeleton key
Dictionary Entries Near skeleton key
Cite this Entry
“Skeleton key.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/skeleton%20key. Accessed 21 Dec. 2024.
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