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mainstay

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main⋅stay

  [meyn-stey]
Use mainstay in a Sentence
–noun
1. Nautical. the stay that secures the mainmast forward.
2. a person or thing that acts as a chief support or part: Coffee is the mainstay of the country's economy.
Origin:
1475–85; main 1 + stay 2

Synonyms:
2. pillar, bulwark, anchor, prop.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To mainstay
main·stay   (mān'stā')   
n.  
  1. A chief support: Agriculture is a mainstay of the economy.
  2. Nautical A strong rope that serves to steady and support the mainmast of a sailing vessel.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Mainstay

Main"stay`\, n. 1. (Naut.) The stay extending from the foot of the foremast to the maintop.

2. Main support; principal dependence.

The great mainstay of the Church. --Buckle.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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mainstay 
"chief support," 1787, figurative use of a nautical noun meaning "stay which extends from the main-top to the foot of the foremast" (1485), from main (adj.) + stay (n.).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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