Etymograph

English

keyphrase

From key + phrase.

A compound of key + phrase

Proto-West Germanic *kaiju

Old English cǣġ ‘key’

Middle English keye ‘a key’

English key

Ancient Greek φράσις ‘manner of expression’

Late Latin phrasis ‘diction’

English phrase

Today it means

noun A phrase used in encryption as a key, like a single keyword (password).

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / keyphrase