diff --git a/distarray/context.py b/distarray/context.py
index 74434670..b1db6f1e 100644
--- a/distarray/context.py
+++ b/distarray/context.py
@@ -163,7 +163,8 @@ def _key_and_push(self, *values):
 
     def delete_key(self, key):
         """ Delete the specific key from all the engines. """
-        cmd = 'del %s' % key
+        cmd = ('try: del %s\n'
+               'except NameError: pass') % key
         self._execute(cmd)
 
     def cleanup(self):