A movable joint that allows a door, gate, or lid to swing open and closed.
From Middle English 'henge' related to 'hang' — it literally meant 'that on which something hangs.' The connection to hanging makes perfect sense when you realize early hinges were just leather straps or rope that doors literally hung from. Germanic tribes used animal hide strips as the first door hinges!
Before metal hinges, people hung their doors on strips of leather like primitive swing sets. The word 'hinge' literally means 'hanger' — so every time you open a door, you're using something that hangs, just like laundry on a clothesline!
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