lynchpin
What holds together
Lynchpin is an alternate spelling of linchpin—a pin passed through the end of an axle to keep a wheel in place.
The figurative sense dominates: a lynchpin is something essential that holds a system together: She was the lynchpin of the whole operation.
The spelling with y, though common, is technically incorrect—the word derives from an old word for axle, not from lynch.
Point of connection
- bondBinding tie or connection
- bridgeStructure spanning an obstacle
- tieEqual score, or neckwear
- hubCentral connection point
nexus · junction · coupling · interface · joint · fastener · splice · union
Movable connecting joint
- axisRotation reference line
- fulcrumLever's balance point
- cruxMost important point
- centerpieceDecorative table focal point
nucleus · epicenter · locus · convergence
Vertebral column, or courage
- pillarUpright architectural support
- mainstayPrimary source of support
- propSupport or stage item
- buttressArchitectural wall reinforcement
anchor · underpinning · foundation · framework · bulwark · reinforcement · stabilizer · base
Utterly required, irreplaceable
- vitalEssential or sustaining existence
- criticalExpressing disapproval or importance
- integralAntiderivative or crucial component
- paramountOf supreme significance
essential · fundamental · necessary · key · pivotal · central · cornerstone · prerequisite
link
Point of connection
hub · nexus · junction · coupling · interface · joint · fastener · splice · union · clasp
hinge
Movable connecting joint
centerpiece · nucleus · epicenter · locus · convergence
backbone
Vertebral column, or courage
buttress · anchor · underpinning · foundation · framework · bulwark · reinforcement · stabilizer · base · girder
indispensable
Utterly required, irreplaceable
- vitalEssential or sustaining existence
- criticalExpressing disapproval or importance
- integralAntiderivative or crucial component
paramount · essential · fundamental · necessary · key · pivotal · central · cornerstone · prerequisite · imperative
- foundationsfoundation, foundations, base, footing, footings
lynchpintriviality
Unimportant small matter
afterthought · nonessential · incidental · superfluity · appendage
lynchpinloose end
Unresolved remaining detail
weak link · liability · dead weight · burden · hanger-on
lynchpinirrelevance
Lack of pertinence
inconsequentiality · footnote · incidental · red herring · tangent