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lynchpin

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Lynch & Wire Lock Pins
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lynch⋅pin

  [linch-pin]
Use lynchpin in a Sentence
–noun
linchpin.
Lynch & Wire Lock Pins
Stocking Importer -Great Prices Volume Discounts - Bulk Sales
knobsource.thomasnet.com/

linch⋅pin

  [linch-pin]
–noun
1. a pin inserted through the end of an axletree to keep the wheel on.
2. something that holds the various elements of a complicated structure together: The monarchy was the linchpin of the nation's traditions and society.
Also, lynchpin.

Origin:
1350–1400; unexplained alter. of ME lynspin, equiv. to lyns, OE lynis axle-pin (c. G Lünse) + pin pin
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To lynchpin
linch·pin or lynch·pin   (lĭnch'pĭn')   
n.  

  1. A locking pin inserted in the end of a shaft, as in an axle, to prevent a wheel from slipping off.

  2. A central cohesive element: Reduced spending is the linchpin of their economic program.


[Middle English linspin : lins, linchpin (from Old English lynis) + pin, pin (from Old English pinn; see pin).]
lynch·pin   (lĭnch'pĭn')   
n.  Variant of linchpin.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

linchpin 
1370s, from M.E. lins "axletree" (from O.E. lynis, from P.Gmc. *luniso) + pin. The peg that holds a wheel on an axle; now mainly figurative.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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