1
: the fundamental or central fact, idea, or mood
sadness is the keynote of this little collection—
Books Abroad
Books AbroadOne keynote of his mind has been his interest in deceit, his perceptions about the use of flimflam in modern life …—Stanley Kauffmann
Stanley Kauffmann2
music
: the first and harmonically fundamental tone of a scale
3
: keynote address
Following Tuesday morning's keynote, sessions progress through all areas.—Jim Rosenberg
Jim RosenbergSprinting from workshops to motivational keynotes featuring famous faces and wannabes, I came away inspired and armed with information …—Peggy Klaus
Peggy Klaus
keynoted; keynoting; keynotes
keynoter
noun
Examples of keynote in a Sentence
Noun
Humor is the keynote of the play.
the need for a greater sense of self-reliance is the keynote of his self-help message
Recent Examples on the Web
David Phelan, Forbes.com, 14 July 2025
Graber's keynote session, according to the release, will discuss the future of social media.
—Karoline Leonard, Austin American Statesman, 6 July 2025
Peter White, Deadline, 9 July 2025
George Lopez will keynote the second annual Social Impact Summit, taking place July 24 in Los Angeles.
—Kimberly Nordyke, HollywoodReporter, 2 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for keynote
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Noun
Apple iPhone 17 Release Date Gurman only talks about the keynote, but when will the onsale date be?
—David Phelan, Forbes.com, 14 July 2025
Graber's keynote session, according to the release, will discuss the future of social media.
—Karoline Leonard, Austin American Statesman, 6 July 2025
Verb
Content creator Dhar Mann and Bell Media President Sean Cohan will keynote the 2026 editions, which will take place at the InterContinental Miami from February 2-6.
—Peter White, Deadline, 9 July 2025
George Lopez will keynote the second annual Social Impact Summit, taking place July 24 in Los Angeles.
—Kimberly Nordyke, HollywoodReporter, 2 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for keynote
Cite this Entry
“Keynote.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/keynote. Accessed 21 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
keynote
1 of 2 noun
key·note
ˈkē-ˌnōt 
1
: the first and harmonically fundamental tone of a scale
2
: the fundamental or central fact, idea, or mood
humor is the keynote of the play
keynote
2 of 2 verb1
: to set the keynote of
2
: to give the keynote address at
keynoted the convention
keynoter
noun
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