pivot

American  

[piv-uht] / ˈpɪv ət /

noun

• pivots
  plural

1. a pin, point, or short shaft on the end of which something rests and turns, or upon and about which something rotates or oscillates.

2. the end of a shaft or arbor, resting and turning in a bearing.

3. any thing or person on which something or someone functions or depends vitally.

   He is the pivot of my life.

4. the person in a line, as of troops on parade, whom the others use as a point about which to wheel or maneuver.

5. a whirling about on one foot.

6. a change in policy, opinion, product design, etc., that retains some continuity with its previous version, especially as part of a strategy to appeal to a different audience: the administration’s pivot toward Asia;

   a pivot in public policy;

   the administration’s pivot toward Asia;

   multiple product pivots to reach new consumers.

7. Basketball. the act of keeping one foot in place while holding the ball and moving the other foot one step in any direction, so as not to be charged with traveling.

8. Basketball.

   1. an offensive position in the front court, usually played by the center, in which the player stands facing away from the offensive basket and serves as the pivot of the offense by setting up plays through passing, making screens, and taking shots.

   2. Also called pivotman. the player who plays in the pivot position.

9. Dentistry. (formerly) dowel.

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verb (used without object)

• pivots,
  present (3rd person singular)
• pivoted,
  past participle,  past
• pivoting
  present participle

1. to turn on or as on a pivot.

2. Basketball. to keep one foot in place while holding the ball and moving the other foot one step in any direction.

3. to modify a policy, opinion, product, etc., while retaining some continuity with its previous version, especially as part of a strategy to appeal to a different audience: The studio pivoted away from gritty realism to make the film’s sequel more family-friendly.

   The candidate will need to pivot on her unpopular position regarding prescription drug pricing.

   The studio pivoted away from gritty realism to make the film’s sequel more family-friendly.

verb (used with object)

• pivots,
  present (3rd person singular)
• pivoted,
  past participle,  past
• pivoting
  present participle

1. to mount on, attach by, or provide with a pivot or pivots.

2. to modify (a policy, opinion, product, etc.) while retaining some continuity with its previous version.

   The start-up was able to pivot the app to a new market without losing too many man-hours of coding.

pivot British  

/ ˈpɪvət /

noun

1. a short shaft or pin supporting something that turns; fulcrum

2. the end of a shaft or arbor that terminates in a bearing

3. a person or thing upon which progress, success, etc, depends

4. the person or position from which a military formation takes its reference, as when altering position

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verb

1. (tr) to mount on or provide with a pivot or pivots

2. (intr) to turn on or as if on a pivot

Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• pivots
  plural

Participles

• pivoting
  present
• pivoted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• pivot
  simple
• pivots
  simple
• have pivoted
  perfect
• has pivoted
  perfect
• am pivoting
  progressive
• are pivoting
  progressive
• is pivoting
  progressive
• have been pivoting
  perfect progressive
• has been pivoting
  perfect progressive

Past

• pivoted
  simple
• had pivoted
  perfect
• was pivoting
  progressive
• were pivoting
  progressive
• had been pivoting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will pivot
  simple
• will have pivoted
  perfect
• will be pivoting
  progressive
• will have been pivoting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of pivot

First recorded in 1350–1400; < French, Middle French, Old French “hinge, pivot”; further origin uncertain, perhaps related to Catalan piu, Occitan pivèu “spindle, pivot,” and Provençal pua “tooth on a heckle (flax comb)”

Explanation

To pivot is to turn or rotate, like a hinge. Or a basketball player pivoting back and forth on one foot to protect the ball. When you're not talking about a type of swiveling movement, you can use pivot to mean the one central thing that something depends upon. The central pivot of your student government campaign, for example, might be longer recess time. Or your plans to go to the beach this weekend could pivot upon whether it rains, as the weather channel has predicted, or gets surprisingly sunny.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

pivot pivots pivoted pivoting

Vic Sorbaro, David and Stephen’s father, was propelled by the car-buying craze of the 1950s to pivot from fixing bikes to fixing car tires.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026

All three are able to pivot easily between likable and not, which is key for the shifting alliances in “Verity.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026

Over the years, he has watched friends and neighbors pivot from the Democratic Party to the GOP.

From Slate ● Sep. 28, 2026

While traders say those had little impact on long-dated rates, the bigger driver for the recent calm in bonds was the Federal Reserve’s decision last week to pivot to raise interest rates to fight inflation.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 23, 2026

I snatch the ball with my heel, pivot, and pop it forward.

From "Merci Suárez Changes Gears" by Meg Medina

I currently work at a company that matches contributions, which is a great benefit, but I’m curious if there are better options, especially for someone always expecting the next layoff and potential career pivots.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 2, 2026

After Ron falls in front of everyone, “The Chair Company” pivots into the unexpected.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026

Nonfarm payrolls data for July will be watched especially closely for clues to the Federal Reserve’s rate plotting path, as Chairman Kevin Warsh pivots the Fed away from providing forward guidance.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026

BP, whose performance has generally fallen behind that of its rivals in recent years, has in recent times slashed clean energy investment as it pivots back to its more profitable oil and gas business.

From Barron's ● Jul. 31, 2026

Michael pivots slowly, gazes out in the direction of the trees for a few seconds, and then wham, he releases the throw.

From "Merci Suárez Changes Gears" by Meg Medina

Novig pivoted business models this year, starting 2026 with an in-house trading team before securing regulatory approval in June to operate as a prediction market.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026

So I pivoted to the Terminator, which was gleefully accepted.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026

Londoner Khadija says she was once a fan of elaborate nail art but pivoted to bare nails earlier this year.

From BBC ● Sep. 25, 2026

But shortly after graduating in 2024, she pivoted to fostering a budding passion that had taken root back home.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026

Being a boy, I climbed the wires and pivoted over on a fence post, on the heel of my wounded hand.

From "A Long Way from Chicago" by Richard Peck

The JV is pivoting to new products built with Chery’s EV technology and badged with JLR’s historic Freelander brand.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026

The company has been pivoting to a broader platform and strategy — a “relationship-based selling” approach, whereby it focuses on catering to existing customers and selling them new products.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 17, 2026

Winds and surface currents later carried it out of Petermann Fjord, while satellite observations showed it pivoting away from Joe Island and moving southwest through Nares Strait.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 4, 2026

After its multibillion-dollar bid to become the next Tesla failed, El Segundo’s Faraday Future is pivoting to humanoid robots.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026

The man turned, pivoting the upper portion of his body—a middle-aged man, his dark beard streaked with gray, his thick brows edging into a frown of annoyance—and I saw his eyes go wide.

From "The Chosen" by Chaim Potok

Related Words

• depend
• rotate
• swivel
• twirl
• veer
• whirl