as in anchors
something or someone to which one looks for support
Mom has been our mainstay in this crisis
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Recent Examples of mainstays
On Halloween, Murphy revealed the cast for the upcoming 13th season of American Horror Story, which is set to star Oscar nominee Ariana Grande, returning series regular Jessica Lange, as well as mainstays Angela Bassett, Emma Roberts, Evan Peters and Sarah Paulson.
—
Mathew Rodriguez, Them., 5 Nov. 2025
Antonio Cardamuro, president and founder, said the brand’s mainstays — yellow gold, mosaics of various colors in a single piece — have been performing well at retail.
—James Manso, Footwear News, 4 Nov. 2025
While featured players like Ashley Padilla and Veronika Slowikowska show definite promise, and mainstays like Kenan Thompson, Bowen Yang, and Mikey Day continue to hold down the fort, season 51 is still missing that essential animating X-factor.
—Charu Sinha, Vulture, 2 Nov. 2025
Among those participating are Scorsese mainstays Robert De Niro and Leonardo DiCaprio, who, between them, starred in 15 of the director’s movies (and counting).
—Graham Hillard, The Washington Examiner, 31 Oct. 2025
And daytime Halloween costume mainstays The Talk and The Real have ended their runs.
—Hilary Lewis, HollywoodReporter, 31 Oct. 2025
This was the first entry that didn't feature franchise mainstays Faris and Hall.
—Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 31 Oct. 2025
Among the players who will not be brought back in 2026 are Erik Thommy, the 2025 team’s captain, and mainstays Khiry Shelton and Logan Ndenbe.
—Daniel Sperry, Kansas City Star, 23 Oct. 2025
Pittsburgh enters Week 8 of the season with a 5-2 record but will now have to navigate the rest of the season without one of their mainstays and one of the NFL's best special teamers.
—Rowan Fisher-Shotton, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Oct. 2025
Mathew Rodriguez, Them., 5 Nov. 2025
Antonio Cardamuro, president and founder, said the brand’s mainstays — yellow gold, mosaics of various colors in a single piece — have been performing well at retail.
—James Manso, Footwear News, 4 Nov. 2025
While featured players like Ashley Padilla and Veronika Slowikowska show definite promise, and mainstays like Kenan Thompson, Bowen Yang, and Mikey Day continue to hold down the fort, season 51 is still missing that essential animating X-factor.
—Charu Sinha, Vulture, 2 Nov. 2025
Among those participating are Scorsese mainstays Robert De Niro and Leonardo DiCaprio, who, between them, starred in 15 of the director’s movies (and counting).
—Graham Hillard, The Washington Examiner, 31 Oct. 2025
And daytime Halloween costume mainstays The Talk and The Real have ended their runs.
—Hilary Lewis, HollywoodReporter, 31 Oct. 2025
This was the first entry that didn't feature franchise mainstays Faris and Hall.
—Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 31 Oct. 2025
Among the players who will not be brought back in 2026 are Erik Thommy, the 2025 team’s captain, and mainstays Khiry Shelton and Logan Ndenbe.
—Daniel Sperry, Kansas City Star, 23 Oct. 2025
Pittsburgh enters Week 8 of the season with a 5-2 record but will now have to navigate the rest of the season without one of their mainstays and one of the NFL's best special teamers.
—Rowan Fisher-Shotton, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mainstays
Noun
-
Snook is excellent at playing tremulous and overwhelming feeling without ever seeming hammy or phony, and Marissa’s raw emotion anchors All Her Fault in something real even as the plot reveals grow increasingly (and enjoyably) outrageous.—
Angie Han,
HollywoodReporter,
5 Nov. 2025
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Both business and government should serve as these anchors for economic security.—
Shilpan Amin,
Fortune,
5 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Driving trucks is one of the unappreciated backbones of modern civilization.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
6 Sep. 2025
-
Platform product management is rarely treated as a strategic, first-class discipline, resulting in fragmented backbones that fail to support enterprise-wide innovation.—
Gaurav Dixit,
Forbes.com,
28 Aug. 2025
Noun
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From cozy cashmere knitwear to fine-gauge standbys from Vince and Iro, there are tons of goodies.—
Kristina Rutkowski,
Vogue,
8 Oct. 2025
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The oversized blazer Boxy suit jackets have become fashion-industry standbys.—
Kristina Rutkowski,
Glamour,
12 Sep. 2025
Noun
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My first apartment on 15th and Union Square was a studio in a classy old building with marble pillars, one small room with a bigger bathroom and strangely an even bigger closet.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
6 Nov. 2025
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The lobby's grand pillars and coffered ceilings exude Old World elegance, while the plush furniture and stone fireplace create a cozy living room feel.—
Taylor McIntyre,
Travel + Leisure,
5 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Mainstays.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mainstays. Accessed 10 Nov. 2025.
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