Woodruff key

noun

A semicircular key that fits partly into a circular segment keyseat, with the remainder fitting into a longitudinal slot keyway in the mating part.

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Meanings

nounWoodruff key (plural Woodruff keys)

plural Woodruff keys

  1. engineeringA semicircular key that fits partly into a circular segment keyseat, with the remainder fitting into a longitudinal slot keyway in the mating part.

Origin

Developed by William N. Woodruff of Hartford, Connecticut, in the 1880s, to improve on existing keying practice with more economical keyseat cutting; in the era's technological context, this design offered what is today called a DFM improvement (US patent 368744).

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Cite this entry
APA

Woodruff key. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Woodruff%20key

MLA

“Woodruff key.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Woodruff%20key. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Woodruff key,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Woodruff%20key.

Source: Woodruff key on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.