mainstream
noun
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Definition of mainstream
(Entry 1 of 2)
: a prevailing current or direction of activity or influence
mainstream
verb
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Definition of mainstream (Entry 2 of 2)
1 : to place (a student, such as a disabled child) in regular school classes
2 : to incorporate in the mainstream
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Examples of mainstream in a Sentence
Verb
The poor should be mainstreamed into the private health-insurance system. Ideas that were once controversial have now become mainstreamed.Recent Examples on the Web: Noun
This is not the mainstream of the Democratic Party. — Fox News, "Democrats' new rallying cry: 'Abolish ICE'," 30 June 2018 And yet, few economic policies have been subjected to such obsessive criticism, in particular by mainstream (which is to say, conservative) economists, as the minimum wage. — James K. Galbraith, Fortune, "The Minimum Wage Just Turned 80. Economists Don’t Give It Enough Credit," 25 June 2018 And now, with Trump as president, D’Souza is finally being welcomed back into the conservative mainstream, as a pioneer of the kind of politics our president has brought to the national stage. — Ella Nilsen, Vox, "Trump just announced he’ll pardon Dinesh D’Souza," 31 May 2018 They were known in some circles, but remained the sort of story one expects to never reach the mainstream, let alone catharsis. — Daniel D'addario, Time, "Bill Cosby's Conviction Is an Unexpected Win for #MeToo. But There's a Long Way to Go," 26 Apr. 2018 That becomes the mainstream of the Democratic Party. — Fox News, "Ingraham: Democrats racing to the left," 28 June 2018 Walker’s views are far outside of the mainstream, and that’s why Wisconsin needs a new governor who can be counted on to respect women’s medical decisions and protect Wisconsin’s families from exorbitant healthcare fees. — Mary Spicuzza, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Scott Walker says he doubts Donald Trump's Supreme Court pick would overturn abortion ruling," 13 July 2018 Versus the Surface Pro 3—the first Surface Pro product to break out into the mainstream—the Go has about a third more performance than the Core i5 SP3, and about 20 percent more than the Core i7 version. — Mark Hachman, PCWorld, "Microsoft's $399, 10-inch Surface Go rethinks the Windows tablet for consumers," 9 July 2018 Mr Kurz brought far-right ideas into the Austrian mainstream to keep the parties that originally peddled them away from the top table. — The Economist, "Europe is moving towards the tough immigration policies of Sebastian Kurz," 5 July 2018Recent Examples on the Web: Verb
Later that fall, the therapist noted that Cruz was going to be mainstreamed full-time beginning in January. — Tribune News Service, OregonLive.com, "Cruz revealed gory fantasies to his therapists years before the Parkland massacre," 10 Mar. 2018 With the legality no longer posing any sort of ethical barrier, there's no longer a need to wink, and sports gambling probably will be mainstreamed in a way that will be apparent to both gamblers and fans who've never placed a bet in their lives. — Rick Maese, chicagotribune.com, "A safe bet: Legal gambling could change the way we watch, talk and experience sports," 5 July 2018 Military men and women were coming home with new tattoos after time spent at war or at sea, mainstreaming tattoos like never before. — Craig Hlavaty, Houston Chronicle, "Throwing your skin into the wind: Houston tattoo shop plays with fate and a tattoo dartboard," 3 July 2018 The Clintons, both Chelsea and her mother Hillary, have a very odd habit of insulting a broad swath of America by saying President Trump has mainstreamed hate. — Fox News, "Purple Heart recipient helps veterans battle opioid abuse," 29 May 2018 Later that fall, the therapist noted that Cruz was going to be mainstreamed full-time beginning in January. — Tribune News Service, OregonLive.com, "Cruz revealed gory fantasies to his therapists years before the Parkland massacre," 10 Mar. 2018 Since 1975, when the federal government enacted the Education for All Handicapped Children Act – renamed the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act in 1990 — youngsters with serious health problems have been mainstreamed into public schools. — Peg Quann, Philly.com, "As insurance costs soar, more parents rely on school nurses for children's health care," 18 Apr. 2018 Get our daily newsletter A broad range of tools is available to help mainstream companies build anything from search and recommendation engines to speech-recognition and translation systems, customer-service bots and more. — The Economist, "AI providers will increasingly compete with management consultancies," 28 Mar. 2018 Later that fall, the therapist noted that Cruz was going to be mainstreamed full-time beginning in January. — Tribune News Service, OregonLive.com, "Cruz revealed gory fantasies to his therapists years before the Parkland massacre," 10 Mar. 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'mainstream.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for mainstream
mainstream
verb
English Language Learners Definition of mainstream
: to place (a child with special educational needs) in regular school classes
: to cause (someone or something) to be included in or accepted by the group that includes most people
See the full definition for mainstream in the English Language Learners Dictionary
mainstream
adjective
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Medical Definition of mainstream
: relating to or being tobacco smoke that is drawn (as from a cigarette) directly into the mouth of the smoker and is usually inhaled into the lungs — compare sidestream
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