MAINLY Synonyms: 57 Similar and Opposite Words

mainly

adverb

ˈmān-lē

Definition of mainly

as in mostly

for the most part you mainly need to focus on improving your golf swing

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of mainly That puts OlloNi in a different category from a robot vacuum or a machine built mainly to handle physical work. — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 5 Sep. 2026 Unlike ceramides, which reinforce the moisture barrier, or hyaluronic acid, which mainly hydrates at the surface, urea can moisturize and, at higher strengths, exfoliate dead skin cells. — Christa Joanna Lee, Allure, 4 Sep. 2026 Though Chinese community leaders supported after-school programs to impart Chinese culture, the schools were established mainly to teach English. — H.m.a. Leow, JSTOR Daily, 4 Sep. 2026 Both brothers have grown their following of mainly young men by building a lavish, hyper-macho image of driving fast cars and dating beautiful women. — Reuters, CNN Money, 4 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for mainly

Recent Examples of Synonyms for mainly

Adverb

Details of the contract have been mostly kept secret, as both companies said the agreement contained confidential business information.

— Sydney Sasser, Arkansas Online, 1 Sep. 2026
Decades later, buses helped desegregate schools, hauling Black and white children across the country’s racial divide, a controversial practice that has mostly ended.

— Jeff McMurray, Los Angeles Times, 1 Sep. 2026

Definition of mostly

Adverb

Williams has the versatility to play inside and out, despite playing primarily in the slot in college.

— Matt Schneidman, New York Times, 7 Sep. 2026
Larson notes that whole-wheat or whole-grain crust generally provides more fiber and micronutrients such as magnesium than crust made primarily from refined white flour.

— Daryl Austin, USA Today, 6 Sep. 2026

Definition of primarily

Adverb

That would mean that repetition, rather than representation, is chiefly at stake—a hypnotic ritual.

— Jeffrey Weiss, Artforum, 1 Sep. 2026
Many of the dozens missing in its environs were foreign nationals, chiefly Indian or Indian-origin pilgrims who were returning from, or preparing to make, the journey further into Tibet to Mount Kailash, a holy site for Hindus and Buddhists.

— Ishaan Tharoor, New Yorker, 29 Aug. 2026

Definition of chiefly

Adverb

In the beginning, the team largely focused on fatal drunk-driving cases, Cherney said.

— Amanda Lee Myers, USA Today, 4 Sep. 2026
Beginning with the 2026-27 school year, Texas is moving away from a system that based special education funding largely on where and how students received services.

— Tiffani Jackson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 3 Sep. 2026

Definition of largely

Adverb

Two years later, Wong became one of the key leaders of the city’s Umbrella Movement protests that rallied thousands of predominantly young people to the streets to call for greater democracy by blocking major thoroughfares for 79 straight days.

— Chris Lau, CNN Money, 2 Sep. 2026
If the night had ended after that soaring anthem, few in the heavily female and predominantly middle-aged crowd could have complained.

— Théoden Janes, Charlotte Observer, 2 Sep. 2026

Definition of predominantly

Adverb

Their focus is principally Travis Kelce, who is reclined on an outdoor sofa, posing for a Tommy Hilfiger campaign.

— Nick Remsen, Vogue, 1 Sep. 2026
This rising use of AI has principally been spurred by the evolving advances and widespread adoption of generative AI and LLMs such as ChatGPT, GPT-5, Claude, Gemini, Copilot, and others.

— Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2026

Definition of principally

Adverb

Oregon, meanwhile, faced a terrific test, and Moore was basically the reason the Ducks won.

— Nick Baumgardner, New York Times, 6 Sep. 2026
When kids first got online, parents were bewildered and alarmed, but kids, who tend to gravitate to new technology, found freedom in a space that was basically ungoverned.

— Joshua Rothman, New Yorker, 4 Sep. 2026

Definition of basically

Adverb

Kristen Fisher said families generally were told simply that there were some staffing changes at the facility.

— Robert McCoppin, Chicago Tribune, 1 Sep. 2026
Thematic methodologies have been one of the downfalls of contemporary museology (and art history) generally, a crisis of collective memory and the historical imagination overall.

— George Baker, Artforum, 1 Sep. 2026

Definition of generally

Browse Nearby Words

mainlands

mainly

main man

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“Mainly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mainly. Accessed 8 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of mainly

adverb

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