hinge \hinge\, n. oe. henge, heeng; akin to d. heng, lg. henge,
   prov. e. hingle a small hinge; connected with hang, v., and
   icel. hengja to hang. see hang.
   1913 webster
   1. the hook with its eye, or the joint, on which a door,
      gate, lid, etc., turns or swings; a flexible piece, as a
      strip of leather, which serves as a joint to turn on.
      1913 webster

            the gate self-opened wide,
            on golden hinges turning.             --milton.
      1913 webster

   2. that on which anything turns or depends; a governing
      principle; a cardinal point or rule; as, this argument was
      the hinge on which the question turned.
      1913 webster

   3. one of the four cardinal points, east, west, north, or
      south. r.
      1913 webster

            when the moon is in the hinge at east. --creech.
      1913 webster

            nor slept the winds . . . but rushed abroad.
                                                  --milton.
      1913 webster

   hinge joint.
      a anat. see ginglymus.
      b mech. any joint resembling a hinge, by which two
          pieces are connected so as to permit relative turning
          in one plane.

   to be off the hinges, to be in a state of disorder or
      irregularity; to have lost proper adjustment. --tillotson.
      1913 webster
see also:
hang hinge joint ginglymus to be off the hinges