Dependence
Etymology
From Latin "dependere" (to hang from), from "de-" (down) and "pendere" (to hang). Something dependent literally hangs from its support and falls without it — the metaphor is load-bearing.
noun · /dih-PEN-dunss/
The state of relying on something or someone for support, function, or supply.
What it names
Reliance as a structural fact — a relationship that can be healthy, neutral, or trapping — before any moral judgment is added.
Example
Physical dependence on the medication meant she couldn’t stop abruptly, though she felt no craving for it.
Related idea
Dependence is the body’s or system’s adapted need for a substance; addiction adds compulsion — the loss of control over use despite harm — so one can be dependent without being addicted, and vice versa.