“depend”

To be contingent or pivot entirely upon a single factor or condition.

“Whether the mission succeeds will hinge on the team's ability to stay silent for those critical minutes.”

Best for: Works well in high-stakes or dramatic prose; punchy and direct.

To be founded or supported by something as its basis or condition.

“Her entire future rested on a decision made in a single, trembling moment.”

Best for: Simple yet quietly powerful; effective in literary or emotional contexts.

To turn or be decided by a particular pivotal element.

“The verdict hinged upon one photograph no one expected to surface.”

Best for: Slightly more formal than 'hinge' alone; suits legal or journalistic writing.

To lie or rest upon something as a source of support or trust.

“All hope reposed in a man who hadn't spoken in three years.”

Best for: Archaic and literary; suits poetry, historical fiction, or formal essays.

To exist or be sustained only through the presence of something else.

“The colony's fragile peace subsisted entirely on the goodwill of a single warlord.”

Best for: Philosophical or academic tone; signals deep structural dependency.

To be inherently dependent upon or exist only within something else as an essential quality.

“The painting's meaning inheres in its historical moment, without which it becomes mere decoration.”

Best for: Rare and philosophical; best in academic or critical theory writing.