In this paper, we explore some of the keywords around which the practice of school inspection is ordered in England. As part of a project that explores the role of inspection in governing schooling in England, Scotland and Sweden, we have examined some of the key sources through which Ofsted (The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills) publicly announces its role and purpose. In considering these texts, we have turned to Raymond Williams' conception of "keywords" (1988) to frame our analysis. We suggest that these sources are marked by the presence of a series of such keywords that underpin and legitimise the practice of school inspection by Ofsted. We conclude by considering some of the changing terminology that followed from the Coalition Government that took office in the UK in 2010 and which made education reform a centrepiece of its first period in power.