Fulcrum

Word of the Day for Friday, May 4, 2012

fulcrum \FOOL-kruhm\, noun:

1. The support, or point of rest, on which a lever turns.
2. Any prop or support.
3. Zoology. Any of various structures in an animal serving as a hinge or support.

verb:
1. To fit with a fulcrum; put a fulcrum on.

An equal partnership is like a see-saw that sits on a fulcrum. There is a balance of power when one partner gives in and then the other does likewise.
-- Shirley Gunstream Poland, Hearing the Silent Cries

A storm of plans, each one trying to make me into a fulcrum.
-- Steven Erikson, Memories of Ice

Fulcrum originally referred to a bed post from the Latin word fulcire meaning "to prop up."

Thanks to: http://www.dictionary.com/