Word: Roman à clef Definition: Roman à clef (French pronunciation: [ʁɔmɑ̃ a kle], anglicised as /roʊˌmɒn ə ˈkleɪ/),[1] French for novel with a key, is a novel about real-life events that is overlaid with a façade of fiction.[2] The fictitious names in the novel represent real people, and the “key” is the relationship between the non-fiction and the fiction.[3] This metaphorical key may be produced separately—typically as an explicit guide to the text by the author—or implied, through the use of epigraphs or other literary techniques.[4]
