main

1 muscular strength all their might and main could not budge the stalled car Synonyms beef, brawn, muscle, thewRelated Words force, might, potency, power, puissance, sinew; energy, vigorNear Antonyms impotence, impotency, weakness; debilitation, debility, enfeeblement, faintness, feebleness, frailness, frailty, infirmity

2 one of the great divisions of land on the globe or the main part of such a division islanders periodically traveled back to the main for supplies Synonyms continent, landmass, mainlandRelated Words subcontinent, supercontinentNear Antonyms island, isle, islet; atoll, barrier reef, cay, coral reef, key; cape, headland, peninsula, promontory

3 the main or greater part of something as distinguished from its subordinate parts the main of the tree is still healthy Synonyms brunt, bulk, chief, core, generality, heft [archaic], body, mass, staple, weightRelated Words majority; aggregate, amount, entirety, quantum, sum, sum total, total, totality, whole; bottom, essence, essentiality, marrow, meat, nature, pith, quintessence, root, soul, stuff, substance; center, heart, hub, kernel, middle, nucleus, nut, seat; affair, argument, burden, crux, focus, gist, nub, pitch, point, purport; matter, motif, subject, text, theme, topicNear Antonyms accessory (also accessary), adjunct, appendage, extension, offshoot; component, constituent, element, ingredient; division, part, piece, section, segment; angle, aspect, facet, feature, quality, side