return key

noun

A key on a computer keyboard commonly used to execute a command or confirm the input of keyed text.

Similar
return
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

nounreturn key (plural return keys)

plural return keys

  1. computer hardwareA key on a computer keyboard commonly used to execute a command or confirm the input of keyed text.

Synonyms & antonyms

nounthe key on electric typewriters or computer keyboards that causes a carriage return and a line feed

Similar
return
Broader
key
Also see
return

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

First known use appears c. 1965 in the publication Programming IBM 1620 by E.A. Weiss.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

return key. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/return%20key

MLA

“return key.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/return%20key. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “return key,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/return%20key.

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