Linkage

[ling-kij] /ˈlɪŋ kɪdʒ/

noun
1.
the act of ; state or manner of being .
2.
a system of .
3.
Genetics. an association between two or more genes on a chromosome that tends to cause the characteristics determined by these genes to be inherited as an inseparable unit.
4.
Machinery. an assembly of four or more rods for transmitting motion, usually in the same plane or in parallel planes.
5.
a factor or relationship that connects or ties one thing to another; :
Administration officials sought to establish linkage between grain sales and relaxed immigration laws.
6.
any of various mathematical or drawing devices consisting of a combination of bars or pieces pivoted together so as to turn about one another, usually in parallel planes.
7.
Electricity. .
/ˈlɪŋkɪdʒ/
noun
1.
the act of linking or the state of being linked
2.
a system of interconnected levers or rods for transmitting or regulating the motion of a mechanism
3.
(electronics) the product of the total number of lines of magnetic flux and the number of turns in a coil or circuit through which they pass
4.
(genetics) the occurrence of two genes close together on the same chromosome so that they are unlikely to be separated during crossing over and tend to be inherited as a single unit
5.
the fact of linking separate but related issues in the course of political negotiations
n.

1874, from link (v.) + -age.

To understand the principle of Peaucellier’s link-work, it is convenient to consider previously certain properties of a linkage, (to coin a new and useful word of general application), consisting of an arrangement of six links, obtained in the following manner … (etc.). [“Recent Discoveries in Mechanical Conservation of Motion,” in “Van Nostrand’s Eclectic Engineering Magazine,” vol. XI, July-December 1874]

linkage link·age (lĭng’kĭj)
n.
An association between two or more genes such that the traits they control tend to be inherited together.