English[]
Pronunciation[]
Etymology 1[]
From Middle English main, mayn, meyn, partially from Old English mægen- (“‘strong, principle, main’”) (used in combined forms) from mæġen (“‘strength’”), and partially from Old Norse megn, megenn (“‘strong, main’”), both from Proto-Germanic *maginam from Proto-Indo-European *mogh-, megh- (“‘power’”). Akin to Old English magan (“‘to be able to’”). More at may.
Adjective[]
Main (not comparable)
Positive |
Superlative |
- Principal, most important.
Derived terms[]
- main drag
Translations[]
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Etymology 2[]
From Old English mægen (“‘strength’”), later also taking senses from the adjective.
Noun[]
Singular |
Plural |
Main ({{{1}}})
- (obsolete, except in might and main) Strength. Template:Defdate
- (now archaic, US Template:Context 5) The mainland. Template:Defdate
- 1851, Herman Melville, Moby-Dick:
- Tashtego's long, lean, sable hair, his high cheek bones, and black rounding eyes [...]--all this sufficiently proclaimed him an inheritor of the unvitiated blood of those proud warrior hunters, who, in quest of the great New England moose, had scoured, bow in hand, the aboriginal forests of the main.
- 1851, Herman Melville, Moby-Dick:
- (now poetic) The high seas. Template:Defdate
- A large pipe or cable providing utility service to a building or area, such as water main or electric main. Template:Defdate
- Template:Nautical The mainsail. Template:Defdate
Quotations[]
For examples of the usage of this term see the citations page.
Derived terms[]
- (large pipe or cable): gas main, mains (electricity, water), water main
Translations[]
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- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.
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Anagrams[]
- aimn,
- Amin, iman, mani, mina, NAMI
Anglo-Norman[]
Etymology[]
Latin manus.
Noun[]
Template:Xno-noun-f
- hand (anatomy)
Finnish[]
Noun[]
main
- Instructive plural form of maa.
French[]
Etymology[]
Latin manus (“‘hand’”).
Pronunciation[]
- IPA: /mɛ̃/, X-SAMPA: /me~/, /mE~/
Audio (France, Paris) noicon (file)
- Homophones: mains, maint, maints
- Hyphenation: main
Noun[]
Main f. (plural Mains)
- hand.
- Template:Soccer handball
Synonyms[]
- louche
- mimine
- paluche
- pince
Holonyms[]
- bras
Meronyms[]
- doigt
- dos
- paume
- poignet
- pouce
Derived terms[]
- baisemain
- mainlevée
- mainmettre
- mainmortable
- mainmorte
- mainmuable
- tournemain
Anagrams[]
- aimn,
- iman
- mina
Indonesian[]
Verb[]
Main (bermain)
- to play
Old French[]
Etymology[]
Latin manus.
Noun[]
Template:Fro-noun-f
- hand (anatomy)
Descendants[]
- French: main
ast:main zh-min-nan:main ca:main cs:main de:main et:main el:main es:main fa:main fo:main fr:main fy:main gl:main ko:main hr:main io:main id:main it:main kn:main kk:main sw:main ku:main lo:main lt:main hu:main ml:main my:main nl:main ja:main no:main oc:main tpi:main pl:main pt:main ru:main simple:main fi:main sv:main ta:main te:main th:main tr:main ug:main vi:main zh:main