plural mainstays
1
a
: a crucial or key part of something
Fish is the mainstay of their diet.
Tourism is a mainstay of the city's economy.
The mainstay of treatment for chronic hives of unknown origin is antihistamine medications.—
Mayo Clinic Health Letter
Mayo Clinic Health Letter
b
: someone or something that is a principal or reliable support or resource
Tourism is one of the city's economic mainstays.
Her immense pride in him and unquestioning support were among the few mainstays in his life.—Robert V. Remini
Robert V. Remini2
: a ship's stay (see stay entry 1 sense 1) extending from the maintop forward usually to the foot of the foremast
Synonyms
Examples of mainstay in a Sentence
Fish is a mainstay of their diet.
My mother has always been the mainstay of our family.
Recent Examples on the Web
Along with the day-long concours, which culminated this year with a 1937 Delahaye Type 145 being named Best of Show, model reveals are now a mainstay.
—Robert Ross, Robb Report, 17 Aug. 2024
This campaign comes after her spring relaunch for her iconic brand that has been a mainstay in wardrobes in the 1990s and early aughts.
—Kerane Marcellus, Essence, 16 Aug. 2024
Photo: Hulton Deutsch / Getty Images From there, the ice swan grew in popularity, becoming a mainstay within the fine dining world, while ice vessels evolved into a variety of (sometimes questionable) forms over the years—including its peak popularity as a party piece for drinking shots of vodka.
—Angela Tafoya, Vogue, 14 Aug. 2024
Chris Krebs, who led the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency under the Trump administration (CISA), the top U.S. defensive cyber agency, was a DEF CON mainstay in government.
—Kevin Collier, NBC News, 9 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for mainstay 
Robert Ross, Robb Report, 17 Aug. 2024
This campaign comes after her spring relaunch for her iconic brand that has been a mainstay in wardrobes in the 1990s and early aughts.
—Kerane Marcellus, Essence, 16 Aug. 2024
Photo: Hulton Deutsch / Getty Images From there, the ice swan grew in popularity, becoming a mainstay within the fine dining world, while ice vessels evolved into a variety of (sometimes questionable) forms over the years—including its peak popularity as a party piece for drinking shots of vodka.
—Angela Tafoya, Vogue, 14 Aug. 2024
Chris Krebs, who led the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency under the Trump administration (CISA), the top U.S. defensive cyber agency, was a DEF CON mainstay in government.
—Kevin Collier, NBC News, 9 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for mainstay
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'mainstay.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near mainstay
Cite this Entry
“Mainstay.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mainstay. Accessed 8 Sep. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
mainstay
noun
main·stay
-ˌstā 
1
: a large strong rope running from the maintop of a ship usually to the foot of the foremast
2
: a chief support
the mainstay of the family
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