hinges on
Rests entirely upon
When something hinges on a particular factor, that factor is the critical element determining the outcome.
The phrase draws from the physical hinge that allows a door to swing—remove it and the door fails entirely.
The success of the project hinges on securing funding by March.
Whether we go hiking hinges on the weather.
The expression emphasizes dependency and suggests that everything else is secondary to this one pivotal condition.
- conditionalDependent on prerequisites
- reliantRequiring external support
- dependentRequiring outside support
- crucialOf supreme importance
- make or breakDecisive for outcome
do or die · turn · rely · provisional · predicated · central · fulcrum · linchpin · subject to · determine · count on · contingent · relies · cause · key · pivotal · rest · decide