What are SQL keywords?

SQL keywords are special words used to write database instructions.

They tell the database what action you want to perform, such as reading data, filtering rows, adding records, changing values, or deleting data.

Why keywords matter

Keywords give SQL its meaning.

Without keywords, the database would not understand what you want.

Simple SELECT example

A SELECT query is used to read data from a table.

In this example, we will read data from an Employees table.

Sample table: Employees

SELECT
    employee_name,
    department
FROM Employees;

Filtering with WHERE

The WHERE keyword is used to filter rows.

This query returns only employees from the Sales department.

SELECT
    employee_name,
    department,
    salary
FROM Employees
WHERE department = 'Sales';

Output

Keyword groups

Common SQL keywords can be grouped by what they do.

Key takeaway