Noun

• S: (n) anchor, mainstay, keystone, backbone, linchpin, lynchpin (a central cohesive source of support and stability) "faith is his anchor"; "the keystone of campaign reform was the ban on soft money"; "he is the linchpin of this firm"
• S: (n) backbone, grit, guts, moxie, sand, gumption (fortitude and determination) "he didn't have the guts to try it"
• S: (n) spinal column, vertebral column, spine, backbone, back, rachis (the series of vertebrae forming the axis of the skeleton and protecting the spinal cord) "the fall broke his back"
• S: (n) spine, backbone (the part of a book's cover that encloses the inner side of the book's pages and that faces outward when the book is shelved) "the title and author were printed on the spine of the book"
• S: (n) backbone (the part of a network that connects other networks together) "the backbone is the part of a communication network that carries the heaviest traffic"
• direct hypernym / inherited hypernym / sister term
• S: (n) connection, connexion, connector, connecter, connective (an instrumentality that connects) "he soldered the connection"; "he didn't have the right connector between the amplifier and the speakers"
• S: (n) attachment, bond (a connection that fastens things together)
• S: (n) backbone (the part of a network that connects other networks together) "the backbone is the part of a communication network that carries the heaviest traffic"
• S: (n) ground, earth (a connection between an electrical device and a large conducting body, such as the earth (which is taken to be at zero voltage))
• S: (n) hitch (a connection between a vehicle and the load that it pulls)
• S: (n) hookup (a device providing a connection between a power source and a user) "some campsites have electrical hookups for trailers"
• S: (n) jumper (a small connector used to make temporary electrical connections)
• S: (n) junction, conjunction (something that joins or connects)
• S: (n) slip ring (connection consisting of a metal ring on a rotating part of a machine; provides a continuous electrical connection through brushes on stationary contacts)
• S: (n) telephone line, phone line, telephone circuit, subscriber line, line (a telephone connection)
• S: (n) temporary hookup, patch (a connection intended to be used for a limited time)
• S: (n) yoke, coupling (a connection (like a clamp or vise) between two things so they move together)
• part holonym