hinge

[ hinj ]

/ hɪndʒ /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR hinge ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a jointed device or flexible piece on which a door, gate, shutter, lid, or other attached part turns, swings, or moves.

a natural anatomical joint at which motion occurs around a transverse axis, as that of the knee or a bivalve shell.

that on which something is based or depends; pivotal consideration or factor.

Also called mount. Philately. a gummed sticker for affixing a stamp to a page of an album, so folded as to form a hinge, allowing the stamp to be raised to reveal the text beneath.

verb (used without object), hinged, hing·ing.

to be dependent or contingent on, or as if on, a hinge (usually followed by on or upon): Everything hinges on his decision.

verb (used with object), hinged, hing·ing.

to furnish with or attach by a hinge or hinges.

to attach as if by a hinge.

to make or consider as dependent upon; predicate: He hinged his action on future sales.

RELATED WORDS

depend, pivot, hang, rest, turn, pend

Nearby words

Origin of hinge

1250–1300; Middle English henge; cognate with Low German heng(e), Middle Dutch henge hinge; akin to hang

SYNONYMS FOR hinge

5. rest, swing, pivot, depend.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR hinge ON THESAURUS.COM

Related formshinge·less, adjectivehinge·like, adjectivere·hinge, verb (used with object), re·hinged, re·hing·ing.well-hinged, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for hinged

And this is to say nothing of election strategies that hinged on racial resentment.
GOP Strategists to Party: Hug More Brown Kids|Jamelle Bouie|January 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The case against them hinged on the testimony of their accomplice Nathaniel Simms.
The Week’s Best Longreads for March 16, 2013|David Sessions|March 16, 2013|DAILY BEAST
He knew, as well as I, that his poor average of happiness was fortuitous—that it hinged on the life of his master.
The Continental Monthly, Vol. 3, No. 1 January 1863|Various
The roosts are fastened to a strong frame, as shown in drawing, and the frame—in sections—is hinged at the back.
Carpentry and Woodwork|Edwin W. Foster

It consists of a socket into which slides a pencil by hard friction, and to which is hinged a tapering, pointed leg.
Scientific American Supplement, No. 514, November 7, 1885|Various
Discovering that a hinged shelf on the wall was intended for a table, we put it up and set our breakfast on it.
Land of the Burnt Thigh|Edith Eudora Kohl
The quickest saw frames oscillate, being supported on legs that are hinged to the bottom of the frame.
Farm Mechanics|Herbert A. Shearer

British Dictionary definitions for hinged

hinge

/ (hɪndʒ) /

noun

a device for holding together two parts such that one can swing relative to the other, typically having two interlocking metal leaves held by a pin about which they pivot

anatomy a type of joint, such as the knee joint, that moves only backwards and forwards; a joint that functions in only one planeTechnical name: ginglymus

a similar structure in invertebrate animals, such as the joint between the two halves of a bivalve shell

something on which events, opinions, etc, turn

Also called: mount philately a small thin transparent strip of gummed paper for affixing a stamp to a page

verb

(tr) to attach or fit a hinge to (something)

(intr; usually foll by on or upon) to depend (on)

(intr) to hang or turn on or as if on a hinge

Derived Formshinged, adjectivehingeless, adjectivehingelike, adjective

Word Origin for hinge

C13: probably of Germanic origin; compare Middle Dutch henge; see hang

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for hinged

hinge

c.1300, "the axis of the earth;" late 14c. as "movable joint of a gate or door," not found in Old English, cognate with Middle Dutch henghe "hook, handle," Middle Low German henge "hinge," from Proto-Germanic *hanhan (transitive), *hangen (intransitive), from PIE *konk- "to hang" (see hang (v.)). The notion is the thing from which a door hangs.

hinge

c.1600, "to bend," from hinge (n.). Meaning "turn on, depend" is from 1719. Related: Hinged; hinging.

Medicine definitions for hinged

hinge

[ hĭnj ]

n.

A jointed or flexible device that allows the turning or pivoting of a part, such as a door or lid, on a stationary frame.

hinge

noun

verb (used without object), hinged, hing·ing.

verb (used with object), hinged, hing·ing.

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RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of hinge

Examples from the Web for hinged

hinge

noun

verb

Word Origin for hinge

hinge

hinge

hinge

n.