KEYPAD

noun Also written key pad (Science and Technology) A small panel (either hand-held or attached to a larger keyboard) with an array of push-buttons which can be used to control an electronic machine such as a television, video recorder, calculator, or telephone. Etymology: Formed by compounding: keys arranged on a plastic pad (smaller than the board of keyboard). History and Usage: The word was introduced in the mid seventies in connection with teletext systems, and was soon also being used for TV remote-control monitors and the push-button controls which replaced dials on telephones. Many computer keyboards have a separate numeric keypad which can be used as a calculator, and may also have separate groupings of keys which act as keypads for selecting functions, moving the cursor, etc. Pressing the mute button on the keypad temporarily cuts off your caller. Sunday Times Magazine 28 Oct. 1984, p. 118 This new terminal has...a numeric keypad, a function keypad and a tamper-resistant pinpad. Computer Bulletin June 1986, p. 3