die Taste, -n

Meaning (in English)

Taste has two common meanings in German:

1. Key / button (on a device or instrument)
   A Taste is a physical control you press, e.g. on a keyboard, remote control, phone, elevator, or piano.

   • die Taste drücken = to press a key/button
   • die Leertaste = space bar
   • die Einschalttaste = power button
   • die Klaviertaste = piano key

2. Sense of taste / tasting (less common today, more formal/literary)
   In some contexts Taste can mean the sense of taste (what you perceive with your tongue), though modern German more often uses Geschmack for this.

   • den Geschmackssinn / Geschmack is more typical than Taste in everyday language.

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Word parts

• Taste is a simple noun (no separable parts).
• Related verb: tasten = to feel/try by touch, to grope; also “to cautiously probe”.

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German synonyms

For “key/button”:

• Knopf (button/knob; common)
• Schalter (switch)
• Taste(nknopf) (compound forms used in technical contexts)
• Taste itself is the standard term for keyboard keys

For “sense of taste” (rare usage):

• Geschmack
• Geschmackssinn

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German antonyms (if applicable)

A direct antonym is uncommon, but depending on meaning:

For “key/button”:

• No true antonym; related contrast terms might be:
  • Anzeige (display/indicator) as a non-input element
  • Ausgang (output) vs. Eingabe (input)

For “sense of taste”:

• Geschmacksverlust / Verlust des Geschmackssinns (loss of taste) can function as an opposite idea.

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Notes

• Gender: die Taste (feminine)
• Plural: die Tasten