mainland

noun

main·​land ˈmān-ˌland 

-lənd

: a continent or the main part of a continent as distinguished from an offshore island or sometimes from a cape or peninsula

mainlander

ˈmān-ˌlan-dər 

-lən-

noun

Synonyms of mainland

• continent

Examples of mainland in a Sentence

the boat back to the mainland leaves once every two days

Recent Examples on the Web

Huang visited mainland China at least three times last year, including in January for Lunar New Year celebrations. —Evelyn Cheng, CNBC, 23 Jan. 2026

So Andrew landed a new gig on the mainland at Western Michigan, currently ranked 18th, losses to Tulane and Notre Dame. —Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 23 Jan. 2026

Reached by ferry from mainland Tuscany, the island combines varied coastlines, wooded hills and historic towns that are lively year-round, not just in the summer season. —Rebecca Ann Hughes, Forbes.com, 22 Jan. 2026

The characters here, though, are nowhere near so smart as those conniving pagans and can only dream of outwitting the sophisticated folk from the mainland, coming there with their talk of cake, and comfy chairs, and their lies. —Damon Wise, Deadline, 22 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for mainland

• armband
• backhand
• bandstand
• baseband
• broadband
• command
• cropland
• demand
• disband
• dreamland
• expand
• farmhand

Kids Definition

mainland

noun

main·​land ˈmān-ˌland 

-lənd

: a continent or the main part of a continent as distinguished from an offshore island or sometimes from a cape or peninsula

mainlander noun

Geographical Definition

Mainland

geographical name

Main·​land ˈmān-ˌland 

-lənd

1

honshu

2

island in northern Scotland; largest of the Orkney Islands

3

island in northern Scotland; largest of the Shetland Islands