Lexicon: Katie – key

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Katie, proper n. [dim. of Katherine < Gk. 'pure' or 'dear'.]

Catherine Mary Scott (1831-1917); daughter of Henry Scott and Catherine Strong in New York; widow of Mr. Turner; wife of John Anthon; friend who Emily met at the Evergreens; woman who remarried after the death of her first husband; friend to whom Dickinson sent a pair of knitted garters in a letter (see ED's letters).

keel, n. [ON kjol-r.]

Main support; principal timber in a ship which supports the whole frame.

keen (-est), adj. [OE céne, bold, brave.] (webplay: Bitter, Cold, fine, Piercing, sharp, shooting).

  1. Skillful; able.
  2. Acute; intense; bitter; painful; excruciating.

keep, n. [see keep, v.]

Shelter; haven; sanctuary; ward; guardianship; safe place; place of security; [fig.] bird's nest in a tree.

keep (-ing, -s, kept), v. [OE cépan.] (webplay: approach, accompany, behind, betray, bosom, care, ceasing, company, conquered, continue, country, crown, danger, depart, desire, different, dungeon, eyes, face, fall, field, garden, God, goods, guard, have, heart, heaven, hinder, holds, hours, house, income, joy, keep house, king, know, lose, last, measures, memory, mind, moved, near, nothing, order, pace, perish, practice, presumptuous, school, security, servant's, silence, sins, solemnize, state, step, strictly, supply, talking, tell, term, time, town, turned, viewed, While the stars and course of heaven keep, winter's, wise).

  1. Not reveal; not disclose; not betray; maintain in confidence; confine to one's own knowledge only.
  2. Endure; remain in; stay in; be confined to.
  3. Celebrate; solemnize; observe; set apart time for.
  4. Possess; retain in one's power.
  5. Fulfill; perform; satisfy; accomplish.
  6. Attend; fulfill a commitment for.
  7. Maintain; preserve; retain; continue with.
  8. Maintain; clean; put in proper order.
  9. Hold; contain; set in place.
  10. Incarcerate; hold captive.
  11. Guard; watch over; take care of; have charge over.
  12. Phrase. “Keep away”: prevent; save from; protect from; guard against; [fig.] distract from being conscious of.
  13. Phrase. “Keep house”: stay at home; maintain a family state.

keeper, n. [see keep, v.] (webplay: keeper of the great seal).

  1. Animal trainer; zoo caretaker; one who tends wild creatures.
  2. Owner; legal possessor; authorized holder; [phrase] “the Keeper of the Seal”: the Lord; the living Christ; He who has the sealing power; (see NW 1844: in Great Britain, the keeper of the great seal is a lord who deals with all royal grants, commissions, and charters).
  3. Steward; protector; guardian.
  4. Supervisor; superintendent; custodian.

keepsake (-s), n. [see keep, v.]

  1. Souvenir; [fig.] mortal body.
  2. Token; [fig.] farewell; expression of fondness.
  3. Personal possessions; treasured belongings; tokens of friendship and love.
  4. Preservation; remembrance.

kennel, n. [OFr kenil < L. canis, dog.] (webplay: house, street).

Dog house; shelter for a pack of hounds; [polysemy] fox burrow; haunt of a wild animal.

kernel, n. [OE cyrnel, dim. of corn, n.] (webplay: a little corn, grain, nut; contained in the shell of a nut; husk; thing).

  1. Seed; granule; grain; nut within a husk.
  2. Nucleus; central part.
  3. Core; center; [fig.] soul; spirit; inner being; unique essence.

key (-s), n1. [OE cæg.] (webplay: finger's, frame, lock, played, shutting).

  1. Piano component; ivory lever on the front board of an organ, pianoforte, etc.; segment of a musical instrument which the player presses down to produce musical notes; [fig.] aspect of being.
  2. Fundamental note; basic tone of a piece of music; [metaphor] song; hymn; anthem.
  3. Tool for release; instrument of access; mechanism for unsealing a casket; [metonymy] access; control; power of custody; admission by possession of the keys of any place.
  4. Connection; emblem; symbol; sign; signal; thing that opens or closes the way to something.