Prevailing vs Main - What's the difference?

As adjectives the difference between prevailing and main

is that prevailing is predominant; of greatest force while main is great in size or degree; vast; strong; powerful; important.

As a verb prevailing

is present participle of lang=en.

As an adverb main is

very; very much; greatly; mightily; extremely; exceedingly.

As a noun main is

strength; power; force; violent effort.

As a proper noun Main is

a river in southern Germany, flowing from Bavaria to the Rhine.

prevailing

English

Adjective

(en adjective)

Predominant; of greatest force.

The prevailing opinion was for additional planning time.

* '', reprinted in 1797, John Bell, ''Bell's British Theatre , Volume 33, page 37 (within play),

He has a humour more prevailing than his curiosity, and will willingly dispense with the hearing of one scandalous story, to avoid giving an occasion to make another, by being seen to walk with his wife.

* 1807 , , The Life and Most Surprising Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, of York, Mariner , page 187,

and as merciful coun?els are mo?t prevailing when earne?tly pre??ed, ?o I got them to be of the ?ame opinion as to clemency.

* 1826 , , House of Commons Papers , Volume 17, page 411,

I have heard generally that alderman Archer has a more prevailing and powerful influence in the commons than any other alderman, and exercises that influence ;

Prevalent, common, widespread.

* 1829 , James Annesley, Sketches of the Most Prevalent Diseases of India , page 247,

Fever'' and ''dysentery are the most prevailing diseases in this division, more particularly the latter, which is one of the most destructive amongst the troops in India, and particularly so in the European constitution.

* 1832 , David Brewster, Spain'', entry in ''The Edinburgh Encyclopaedia , Volume 17, page 371,

One of the most prevailing defects in this people is their invincible indolence, and hatred of labour, which has, at all times, paralysed the government of their best princes, and impeded the success of their most brilliant enterprises.

* 1940 , Australian Commonwealth Bureau of Census and Statistics, Official Year Book of the Commonwealth of Australia No. 33 - 1940 , page 49,

In Sydney at 9 am, by far the most prevailing wind is a westerly, particularly during the colder two-thirds of the year.

Verb

(head)

main

English

Etymology 1

From (etyl) (m), (m), (m), partly from (etyl) . More at (may).

Adjective

(-)

(label) Great in size or degree; vast; strong; powerful; important.

* (Samuel Daniel) (1562-1619)

Principal; prime; chief; leading; of chief or principal importance.

* (John Tillotson) (1630-1694)

* , chapter=7

, title= The Mirror and the Lamp , passage=With some of it on the south and more of it on the north of the great main thoroughfare that connects Aldgate and the East India Docks, St. Bede's at this period of its history was perhaps the poorest and most miserable parish in the East End of London.}}

*{{quote-book, year=1935, author= George Goodchild

, title=Death on the Centre Court, chapter=5 , passage=By one o'clock the place was choc-a-bloc. […] The restaurant was packed, and the promenade between the two main courts and the subsidiary courts was thronged with healthy-looking youngish people, drawn to the Mecca of tennis from all parts of the country.}}

Principal or chief in size or extent; largest; consisting of the largest part; most important by reason or size or strength.

* (John Milton) (1608-1674)

* {{quote-magazine, date=2013-08-03, volume=408, issue=8847, magazine=(The Economist)

, title= Yesterday’s fuel , passage=The dawn of the oil age was fairly recent. Although the stuff was used to waterproof boats in the Middle East 6,000 years ago, extracting it in earnest began only in 1859 after an oil strike in Pennsylvania.

Full; undivided; sheer (of strength, force etc.).

* 1817 , (Walter Scott), , XII:

(label) Belonging to or connected with the principal mast in a vessel.

(label) Big; angry.

Derived terms

* main drag * main road

Adverb

(en adverb)

Very; very much; greatly; mightily; extremely; exceedingly.

* 1799 , Samuel Foote, The works of Samuel Foote :

* 1840 , Richard Brinsley Sheridan, Leigh Hunt, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, The dramatic works of Richard Brinsley Sheridan :

Etymology 2

From (etyl) , later also taking senses from the adjective.

Noun

(en noun)

* Spenser

That which is chief or principal; the chief or main portion; the gross; the bulk; the greater part.

* Francis Bacon

* 1858 , Humphrey Prideaux, James Talboys Wheeler, An historical connection of the Old and New Testaments :

* Francis Bacon

* 1624 , John Smith, Generall Historie , in Kupperman 1988, page 90:

* 1624 , John Donne, Devotions Upon Emergent Occasions, and severall steps in my Sicknes (Meditation XVII):

* 1851 , Herman Melville, Moby-Dick :

* Dryden

A large pipe or cable providing utility service to a building or area, such as water main or electric main.

(label) The mainsail.

Quotations

* (English Citations of "main")

Derived terms

{{der3, (large pipe or cable) gas main, mains (qualifier), water main , in the main , main brace , main drag , maincrop , mainframe , mainland , mainline, main line , mainmast , mainplane , mainsail , mainsheet , mainspring , mainstreet, main street , maintop , maintopmast}}

Etymology 3

; compare (manual).

Noun

(en noun)

A hand or match in a game of dice.

(Prior)

(Thackeray)

A stake played for at dice.

* Shakespeare, The First Park of King Henry IV

The largest throw in a match at dice; a throw at dice within given limits, as in the game of hazard.

A match at cockfighting.

* Thackeray

A main-hamper, or fruit basket.

(Ainsworth)

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Anagrams

External links

* 1000 English basic words ----