linchpin
/ˈlɪnt͡ʃˌpɪn/
linchpin noun: a pin inserted through holes at the end of an axle or shaft, so as to secure a wheel or shaft-mounted device.
Noun
linchpin (plural linchpins)
- A pin inserted through holes at the end of an axle or shaft, so as to secure a wheel or shaft-mounted device.
- In ij camellis ferri vocatis lynspins emptis pro carectis iiijᵈ.1376–7, Compotus Roll Hyde Manor (In the manuscript deeds of Westminster Abbey)
- Every design that villany could suggest was had recourse to in the hopes of nobbling Wild Dayrell; but never being left for an hour by either his trainer or jockey, he escaped the intended “coopering,” even when the lynchpins of the wheels of his van had been tampered with.1864 June, Baily's Magazine of Sports & Pastimes, volume 8, page 110
- Synonyms:
- axlepin
- A central cohesive source of stability and security; a person or thing that is critical to a system or organisation.
- What is difficult to appreciate, however, is the discrepancy between his statement to the 'Manchester Guardian' correspondent and his known abhorance for party politics, which is the lynchpin of modern democracy.1958, The Eastern Economist
- Community nurses have been described as the lynchpins of palliative care in the community.2013, Dvaid Sines, Community and Public Health Nursing, page 2006
- Synonyms:
- keystone
Verb
linchpin (third-person singular simple present linchpins, present participle linchpinning, simple past and past participle linchpinned)
- To adopt as, or serve as, a central cohesive source of stability and security.
- The poems turn fear of individual death into an audit of the costs of an aristocratic status quo which is linchpinned by a monarchy indulging in paradigms of social redress that have become cosmetic, opportunities for self-display rather than genuine justice.2013, Christine Chism, Alliterative Revivals, page 238
linchpin meaning in Bengali, Telugu, Kannada and Sanskrit
linchpin in Bengali
- চাকার অক্ষের পিন, অপরিহার্য, মূল উপাদান
linchpin in Telugu
- a linchpin
- చీల cīla
linchpin in Kannada
- ಕಡಾಣಿ
linchpin in Sanskrit
- a linchpin
- आणि āṇí
Examples of linchpin in a sentence
- The axles were attached to the wooden floors with leather straps, the floor projecting on each side to take the wheels which were secured by linchpins to their outer faces.1971, Gwen White, Antique Toys And Their Background, page 79:
- Second, QAnon, whose adherents have deep ties to countless other large communities, has become a linchpin in that ecosystem, and the absurdity of its claims in no way reduces its political influence.2020 October 20, Renée DiResta, “The Right’s Disinformation Machine Is Getting Ready for Trump to Lose”, in The Atlantic:
Synonyms of linchpin
Forms of linchpin
| Noun | |
|---|---|
| plural | linchpins |
| alternative form | linch-pin |
| alternative form | lynchpin |
| alternative form | lynch-pin |
| alternative form | link-pin |
| alternative form | lin-pin |
| Verb | |
| third-person singular present | linchpins |
| present participle | linchpinning |
| past participle | linchpinned |
| past | linchpinned |
Origin of linchpin
From Middle English lynspin, compound of lins (“axletree”) and pin, from Old English lynis (“lynchpin”), from Proto-West Germanic *lunis, from Proto-Germanic *lunaz – compare German Lünse and Dutch luns – from Proto-Indo-European. Possible further cognates are Welsh olwyn (“wheel”), Old Armenian ողն (ołn, “back; spine, backbone”) and Sanskrit आणि (āṇí, “lynchpin”). Figurative use attested from the mid-20th century.
Questions about linchpin
- What does linchpin mean?
- Linchpin means a pin inserted through holes at the end of an axle or shaft, so as to secure a wheel or shaft-mounted device.
- What is linchpin in Bengali?
- Linchpin in Bengali is চাকার অক্ষের পিন, অপরিহার্য, মূল উপাদান. See Linchpin meaning in Bengali.
- How do you use linchpin in a sentence?
- The axles were attached to the wooden floors with leather straps, the floor projecting on each side to take the wheels which were secured by linchpins to their outer faces.
- What part of speech is linchpin?
- Linchpin can be a noun or a verb.
- How do you pronounce linchpin?
- Linchpin is pronounced /ˈlɪnt͡ʃˌpɪn/.
- What is the plural of linchpin?
- The plural of linchpin is linchpins.
Words near linchpin in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: linchpin (page history and authors); linchpin (Bengali Wiktionary) (page history and authors); చీల (Telugu) (page history and authors); linchpin (Kannada Wiktionary) (page history and authors); आणि (Sanskrit) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: En-us-linchpin.oga.
Cite this entry: “linchpin.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/linchpin. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.