Definition of MAIN

main

Plural: mains

Noun

  • The principal or most important part of something.
  • any very large body of (salt) water
  • a principal pipe in a system that distributes water or gas or electricity or that collects sewage
  • That which is chief or principal; the chief or main portion; the bulk, the greater part, gross.
  • That which is chief or principal; the chief or main portion; the bulk, the greater part, gross.
  • The primary character that one plays in a video game in which one can play more than one character.
  • That which is chief or principal; the chief or main portion; the bulk, the greater part, gross.
  • A main account.
  • A large cable or pipe providing utility service to an area or a building, such as a water main or electric main.
  • Ellipsis of main course (“the principal dish of a meal”).
  • The high seas.
  • The mainland.
  • Ellipsis of mainsail.
  • Force, power, strength, violent effort.
  • A hand or match in a game of dice.
  • The largest throw in a match at dice; in the game of hazard, a number from one to nine called out by a person before the dice are thrown.
  • A stake played for at dice.
  • A sporting contest or match, especially a cockfighting match.
  • A banker's shovel for coins.
  • A basket for gathering grapes.

Adjective Satellite

  • most important element
    • "the main doors were of solid glass"
  • of force; of the greatest possible intensity
    • "by main strength"

Adjective

  • (of a clause) capable of standing syntactically alone as a complete sentence
    • "the main (or independent) clause in a complex sentence has at least a subject and a verb"

Adj

  • Of chief or leading importance; prime, principal.
  • Chief, most important, or principal in extent, size, or strength; consisting of the largest part.
  • Full, sheer, undivided.
  • Big; angry.
  • Belonging to or connected with the principal mast in a vessel.
  • Great in size or degree; important, powerful, strong, vast.

Adv

  • Exceedingly, extremely, greatly, mightily, very, very much.

Verb

  • Ellipsis of mainline (“to inject (a drug) directly into a vein”).
  • To mainly play a specific character or side, or with specific equipment, during a game.
  • To convert (a road) into a main or primary road.

Examples

  • For new players, I recommend maining the dagger and using the axe as a backup weapon.
  • He mains the same character as me in that game.
  • His main got banned after his last post.
  • His opponent’s main strategy was to hoard high-value letters.
  • I had scampi and chips for my main and a slice of cheesecake for dessert.
  • main body of an army
  • main branch of a river
  • main timbers
  • My WoW main has reached level cap and I’m on my way getting my first alt there as well.
  • The main office is actually one of the smaller rooms.
  • There's a gas leak in the main outside the building.
  • What race do you main and what is your favourite race to beat?

Origin / Etymology

From Middle English mayn, main, maine, mæin, meyn, from main (noun) (see further at etymology 2); compare Old English mæġen (“strong, main, principal”) (used in combination) and Old Norse megn, megenn (“strong, main”).
The word is cognate with Old High German megīn (“strong, mighty”) (modern German Möge, Vermögen (“power, wealth”)), and also akin to Old English magan (“to be able to”). See also may.

Antonyms

dependent, alt

Scrabble Score: 6

main: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Word
main: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
main: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 8

main: valid Words With Friends Word