1. Axis consisting of a short shaft that supports something that turns
   "The door swung smoothly on its pivot";
   - pin
    
2. The act of turning on (or as if on) a pivot
   "the golfer went to the driving range to practice his pivot"
    
3. A person or thing that plays a central or crucial role
   "She became the pivot of the team's defensive strategy"
    
4. (statistics) a data point in a sorted list used as a reference for comparison
   "They used the median as the pivot for their quartile calculations"
    
5. [N. Amer] The person in a rank around whom the others wheel and manoeuvre
   "The drill sergeant acted as the pivot man during the military parade";
   - pivot man [N. Amer]

1. Turn on a pivot
   "The chair pivoted to face the desk";
   - swivel
    
2. Adapt or change strategies quickly
   "The company pivoted to online sales when the pandemic hit"

Derived forms: pivoted, pivoting, pivots

Type of: axis, axis of rotation, marcher, parader, rotary motion, rotation, turn

Encyclopedia: Pivot, Alberta