Dictionary
Thesaurus
Encyclopedia
Translator
Web
Related Searches
Synonyms
Nearby Words

main

 - 8 dictionary results

main

1  [meyn]
Use main in a Sentence
–adjective
1. chief in size, extent, or importance; principal; leading: the company's main office; the main features of a plan.
2. sheer; utmost, as strength or force: to lift a stone by main force.
3. of or pertaining to a broad expanse: main sea.
4. Grammar. syntactically independent; capable of use in isolation. Compare dependent (def. 4), independent (def. 14), main clause.
5. Nautical.
a. of or pertaining to a mainmast.
b. noting or pertaining to a sail, yard, boom, etc., or to any rigging belonging to a mainmast.
c. noting any stay running aft and upward to the head of a mainmast: main topmast stay.
6. Obsolete.
a. having or exerting great strength or force; mighty.
b. having momentous or important results; significant.
–noun
7. a principal pipe or duct in a system used to distribute water, gas, etc.
8. physical strength, power, or force: to struggle with might and main.
9. the chief or principal part or point: The main of their investments was lost during the war.
10. Literary. the open ocean; high sea: the bounding main.
11. the mainland.
–adverb
12. South Midland U.S. (chiefly Appalachian). very; exceedingly: The dogs treed a main big coon.
–verb (used without object), verb (used with object)
13. Slang. mainline.
—Idiom
14. in the main, for the most part; chiefly: In the main, the novel was dull reading.
Origin:
bef. 900; (n.) ME meyn, mayn strength, power, OE mægen, c. ON megin(n), megn strength; (adj.) ME mayn, partly < ON megenn, megn strong, partly independent use of OE mægen (n.) taken as an adj. in compounds, as in mægen-weorc, lit., work of might

Synonyms:
1. cardinal, prime, paramount, primary, capital. 2. pure, direct. 7. conduit. 8. might.

Antonyms:
1. secondary, least. 8. weakness.

main

2  [meyn]
–noun
a cockfighting match.
Origin:
1560–70; perh. special use of main 1 ; cf. main chance

Main

  [meyn; Ger. mahyn]
–noun
a river in central and W Germany, flowing W from the Bohemian Forest in N Bavaria into the Rhine at Mainz. 305 mi. (490 km) long.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To main
main   (mān)   
adj.  

  1. Most important; principal. See Synonyms at chief.

  2. Exerted to the utmost; sheer: by main strength.

  3. Nautical Connected to or located near the mainmast: a main skysail.

  4. Grammar Of, relating to, or being the principal clause or verb of a complex sentence.

  5. Obsolete Of or relating to a continuous area or stretch, as of land or water.

n.  

  1. The chief or largest part: His ideas are, in the main, impractical.

  2. The principal pipe or conduit in a system for conveying water, gas, oil, or other utility.

  3. Physical strength: fought with might and main.

  4. A mainland.

  5. The open ocean.

  6. Nautical

    1. A mainsail.

    2. A mainmast.


[Middle English, from Old English mægen, strength; see magh- in Indo-European roots.]
Main   (mān, mīn)   
A river rising in eastern Germany and flowing about 499 km (310 mi) generally westward to the Rhine River at Mainz.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

main  (n.)
O.E. mægen (n.) "power, strength, force," from P.Gmc. *maginam- "power," from *mag- "be able, have power" (see may). Original sense preserved in phrase with might and main. Meaning "principal channel in a utility system" is first recorded 1727 in main drain; Used since 1548 for "continuous stretch of land or water."

main  (adj.)
c.1205, "large, bulky, strong," from O.E. mægen- "power, strength, force," used in compounds (see main (n.)), probably infl. by O.N. megenn (adj.) "strong, powerful." Sense of "chief" is c.1400. In Spanish Main the word is short for mainland (1375) and refers to the coast between Panama and Orinoco. Main man "favorite male friend, hero" is from 1967, U.S. black slang.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Idioms & Phrases

main

In addition to the idioms beginning with main, also see eye to the main chance; in the main; might and main.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
Cite This Source
Search another word or see main on Thesaurus | Reference
FacebookTwitterFollow us:
Partner Sites:
Ask AnswersEviteExpediaHotelsHotwireLife123LiveDailyMy Way