mechanism

noun6

1. •
   Any mechanical means for the conversion or control of motion, or the transmission or control of power.
2. •
   A group of entities, such as objects, that interact together.

   • Whatever the mechanism, attempts to starve the beast through revenue shortages somehow seem to make the beast all the more voracious. — 2010
3. •
   A mental, physical, or chemical process.
4. •
   Any combination of cams, gears, links, belts, chains and logical mechanical elements.

   • A doorknob of whatever roundish shape is effectively a continuum of levers, with the axis of the latching mechanism—known as the spindle—being the fulcrum about which the turning takes place. — 2012
5. •
   Any process of, or system designed to manage useful energy conversion.
6. •
   The theory that all natural phenomena can be explained by physical causes.