key card

noun

plural key cards

: a small usually plastic card that contains encoded data to electronically open or access something (such as a door or a system)

Hotel room doors are often accessed by a key card programmed by the front desk.

—Kara Godfrey

Morrill Hall has an open lobby but requires key cards to enter elevators to get to dorm rooms.

—The Associated Press State & Local Wire

… a plan to buy a $1 million key card voting system …

—Hillary Chabot

Examples of key card in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Puzzles range from the surreal, like finding a clearly out-of-time object to appease a ghost, to practical, like finding key cards and fixing the building’s HVAC. —Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 22 Oct. 2024

And with more guests using digital key cards, some guests will never interact with the front desk. —Richard Sine, Forbes, 26 Sep. 2024

Rooftop solar panels, in-house composting, digital and reusable wood key cards, and full-size bath products (contributing to a reduction in single-use plastics), and the aforementioned Give It Forward program are a few of the sustainability initiatives here. —Adam Erace, Travel + Leisure, 17 Sep. 2024

In the era of cybersecurity and hacking nightmares, hotels are increasingly adopting digital wallets as a solution to security concerns associated with traditional key cards. —Gene Marks, Forbes, 8 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1966, in the meaning defined above