1. a key to an outside door of a house or apartment

1. relating to or being a child who regularly spends time alone at home after school because parents are working

Examples

• She kept her latchkey on a chain around her neck.
• The apartment manager gave each tenant a latchkey.
• Many latchkey children learn to be independent at an early age.
• The latchkey kid program provides after-school supervision.
• He was a latchkey child who came home to an empty house every day.
• The social worker studied the effects on latchkey kids.
• She lost her latchkey and couldn’t get into the building.