Meaning

13 senses
  1. That which is chief or principal; the chief or main portion; the bulk, the greater part, gross.

  2. 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.

    My WoW main has reached level cap and I’m on my way getting my first alt there as well.

  3. (Internet)A main account.

    His main got banned after his last post.

  4. A large cable or pipe providing utility service to an area or a building, such as a water main or electric main.

    There's a gas leak in the main outside the building.

    Hauptleitung

  5. (poetic)The high seas.

  6. A banker's shovel for coins.

  7. (US, archaic, dialectal)The mainland.

  8. (obsolete)Force, power, strength, violent effort.

  9. (obsolete)A hand or match in a game of dice.

  10. (obsolete)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.

  11. (obsolete)A stake played for at dice.

  12. (obsolete)A sporting contest or match, especially a cockfighting match.

More definitions
  • a principal pipe in a system that distributes water or gas or electricity or that collects sewage
  • any very large body of (salt) water

Examples

936 sentences
  1. What is the main purpose of this plan?

    Яка основна мета цього плану?

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  2. That's our main goal.

    Це наша основна мета.

    ruЭто наша основная цель.

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  3. What's your main goal?

    Яка твоя основна мета?

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  4. This is our main goal.

    Це наша основна мета.

    ruЭто наша главная цель.

    deDas ist unser Hauptziel.

    CC BY · Tatoeba · Eldad · B1Open on TatoebaReport a problem
  5. This is our main objective.

    Це наша основна мета.

    ruЭто наша главная цель.

    deDies ist unser Hauptziel.

    CC BY · Tatoeba · Eldad · B1Open on TatoebaReport a problem

Translations

1 languages
Deutsch
By meaning 1
large pipe or cable:

Origin

From Middle English mayn, main, maine, mæine, mæȝen, from Old English mæġen (“strength”),

From Middle English mayn, main, maine, mæine, mæȝen, from Old English mæġen (“strength”), from Proto-Germanic *maginą (“strength, power, might”), *maginaz (“strong”), from Proto-Indo-European *megʰ- (“be able”).

Uncertain; probably from the adjective main. Evidence is lacking for a derivation from French main (“hand”).

Uncertain, possibly from French main (“hand”).

Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source

Forms

plural: mains
Singularmain
Pluralmains

regular

Synonyms

1 synonyms
Close in meaning
  • any very large body of (salt) water:briny

Antonyms

1 antonyms

Word family

30 related words

Collocations

12 patterns
  • the main reason
  • main reason
  • isn't the main
  • main reason why
  • main reason that
  • not the main
  • the main gate
  • main gate
  • of the main
  • main problem is
  • main problem
  • main course

See also

neighbours in the dictionary
main — meaning, examples, forms, synonyms | Krumeto