Main

How to spell main

4 letters · 1 syllable

How to pronounce main

What does main mean?

1. adjectiveMost important, largest, or principal among several things.
2. nounA principal pipe or cable in a system that carries water, gas, or electricity.

Main in a sentence

• adjective

  The main reason for the delay was a staffing shortage.

• noun

  A burst water main flooded the street overnight.

• adjective

  Our main office is located in the city centre.

• noun

  Engineers shut off the gas main before starting repairs.

Where does main come from?

Language of origin: Germanic

The word traces back to the Old English noun mægen and its close Old Norse relative megin, both of which literally meant 'strength', 'force', or 'power'. In the early medieval period 'main' was a noun in English for sheer physical might, a sense that still survives in the fixed phrase 'with might and main'. From the idea of the strongest or most forceful part, the word shifted into an adjective meaning the chief, principal, or largest element of something, a development well established by the 1500s. The noun sense for a principal pipe or cable, as in a water main, grew out of that same notion of the primary line that everything else branches from. Because it sounds identical to 'mane' (an animal's neck hair) and 'Maine' (the American state), 'main' is a classic homophone trap, even though its own spelling is short and regular.

How the word is built

• main (from Old English mægen and Old Norse megin: strength, power), used adjectivally to mean chief or principal

Words that sound like main

They sound the same but mean different things, so the meaning decides which spelling to write.

• mane: The long hair growing along the neck of a horse, lion, or similar animal.