fulcrum

noun

ful·crum ˈfu̇l-krəm

ˈfəl-

plural fulcrums or fulcra ˈfu̇l-krə

ˈfəl-

: prop

specifically : the support about which a lever turns

the camera moves on a fixed fulcrum, either horizontally (panning) or vertically (tilting) —

Gerald Mast

: one that supplies capability for action

he is … the reader's eyes and ears and the fulcrum of his judgment—

Bernard De Voto

: a part of an animal that serves as a hinge or support

Did you know?

Fulcrum, which means "bedpost" in Latin, comes from the verb fulcire, which means "to prop." When the word fulcrum was first used in the 17th century, it referred to the point on which a lever or similar device (such as the oar of a boat) is supported. The literal use easily supported figurative use, and it didn't take long for the word to develop a meaning referring to one deemed essential to the function or development of something. Despite fulcrum's multiple senses, the word's meanings have kept a steady theme. In zoology, fulcrum refers to a part of an animal that serves as a hinge or support, such as the joint supporting a bird's wing.

Examples of fulcrum in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

The baseplate pivots around the disc housing like a fulcrum, efficiently leveraging rider weight and transferring energy to four bushings at the corners of each binding. —

Drew Zieff, Outside Online, 11 Oct. 2024 Instead, July nighttime U.S. departure from Bagram Air Base, a key logistics fulcrum, will become an enduring symbol of our military failure in Afghanistan. —

P. Michael McKinley, Foreign Affairs, 16 Aug. 2021 One of the greatest worries was that Harris might ultimately fall short with workers in Midwestern factory towns, the kinds of places that Klain described as the fulcrum of the race—Flint, Manitowoc, Altoona. —

Evan Osnos, The New Yorker, 13 Oct. 2024 Interestingly, the artistic fulcrum for these designs ended up being a painter even older than Goya: Hieronymus Bosch and his famed oak panel triptych The Garden of Earthly Delights, which Clark and Da Corte also saw at the Prado. —

Juliet Izon, Architectural Digest, 24 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for fulcrum