Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

key to the midway

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.67 in modern English

Syllables: key -to the mid-way
IPA

33

Scrabble Score

14

Letters

3

Syllables

11

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A fictional item, the subject of a fool's errand.

noun

A Ferris wheel or carousel, due to their central location.

Example Sentences

"Near-synonyms: skyhook, left-handed monkey wrench, left-handed smoke shifter, blinker fluid, muffler bearing, relative bearing grease, pigeon's milk"
"“I’m a wheel man,” he says. “I’ve been crazy about Ferris wheels since I was a kid. The Ferris wheel is the key to the midway. When it’s up and running and the lights are on, everybody knows the show is open.”"

Etymology

Carny slang, from the custom of sending a rube on a quest for the (non-existent) “key to the midway”.

Inflected Forms

keys to the midway (plural)

Phrases

key to the city key to the kingdom

Frequently Paired Words

key to the city key to the kingdom snark

Synonyms

skyhook left-handed monkey wrench left-handed smoke shifter blinker fluid muffler bearing relative bearing grease pigeon's milk

Questions

What does key to the midway mean?: A fictional item, the subject of a fool's errand.
Where does key to the midway come from?: Carny slang, from the custom of sending a rube on a quest for the (non-existent) “key to the midway”.

How to pronounce key to the midway

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