focal point, cornerstone, lightning rod, leitmotif, lodestone, linchpin, signifier, rallying cry, rorschach test, centerpiece, metaphor, staple, guidepost, cause celebre, fulcrum, wellspring, metonym, crucible, keystone, flashpoint, hallmark, exemplar, underpinning, catchword, mainstay, litmus test, precursor, byword, definer, inspiration, forbearer, archetype, transcendent, leitmotiv, catalyst, microcosm, embodiment, allegory, muse, fodder, launching pad, forerunner, grist, synonym, lodestar, subtext, objective correlative, shorthand, sine qua non, epitome, watchword, lynchpin, anathema, beacon, buzzword, genesis, sophoclean, barometer, symbol, anachronism, bedrock, ecumenicalism, relevance, manifestation, galvanizing, whipping boy, counterpoint, crux, harbinger, polestar, resonance, prefiguring, du jour, groundbreaker, embraceable, evocation, paramount, apotheosis, antecedent, personification, reflection, locus, affirmation, template, paean, renascence, emersonian, movable feast, inseparability, limitlessness, prelude, springboard, fountainhead, reminder, essentialness, sui generis, catharsis, commonplaces, malleability, quintessence, negritude, element, touchstones, safeguard, prop, corrective, criterion, guide, desideratum, antidote, precondition, groundwork, motivator, yardstick, guideposts, preventive, resource, intermediary, prerequisite

baseline, benchmark, graduated table, norm, ordered series, scale, scale of measurement, standard of measurement, yardstick

point of reference, reference, reference point

criterion, measure, standard