mainspring
/ˈmeɪnsprɪŋ
/noun
1The main agent of motivation: innovation is the mainspring of the new economy...
- The vital mainspring in this process is the party, just as the vital mainspring in the mechanism of the party is its leadership.
- In short, cybercash is viewed as the mainspring in the emergence of ‘virtual capitalism’
- Envy and greed were the mainsprings of their creativity; it would have been more accurate if some of them had been called the Envious Young Men.
Synonyms
motive, motivation, impetus, driving force, incentive, impulse, cause, prime mover, reason, origin, fountain, fount, beginning, root, generator, basis
2The principal spring in a watch, clock, or other mechanism.You are rotating and moving the loaded cylinder forward as well as extending the breech block while compressing the mainspring and cylinder hushing spring....
- Also, the gear train of a mechanical watch is under constant load from the mainspring whereas the gear train in a quartz watch is not under any load.
- If we were told that there was a watch without a mainspring, we would hardly be reassured by the further information that it had, however, an infinite train of gear-wheels.