shift key

Meaning

1. The key on a typewriter used to select uppercase letters and certain special characters by physically moving the mechanism
2. A key on a personal computer or terminal keyboard used to effect the same function, or to change the function of the function keys.

Synonyms

shift

Translations

Umschalttaste

tecla de mayúsculas

touche majuscule

tecla shift

cambiar

tecla SHIFT

tecla de majúscules

üst damga tuşu

Umschalter

Etymology

First use appears c. 1883 in the listing of U.S. Patents.