plural mainstays
1
a
: a crucial or key part of something
Fish is the mainstay of their diet.
Tourism is a mainstay of the city's economy.
The mainstay of treatment for chronic hives of unknown origin is antihistamine medications.—
Mayo Clinic Health Letter
Mayo Clinic Health Letter
b
: someone or something that is a principal or reliable support or resource
Tourism is one of the city's economic mainstays.
Her immense pride in him and unquestioning support were among the few mainstays in his life.—Robert V. Remini
Robert V. Remini2
: a ship's stay (see stay entry 1 sense 1) extending from the maintop forward usually to the foot of the foremast
Examples of mainstay in a Sentence
Fish is a mainstay of their diet.
My mother has always been the mainstay of our family.
Recent Examples on the Web
The Dukes ball has been a mainstay of English cricket since the earliest days of the game.
—James Wallace, New York Times, 22 Aug. 2025
Mark your calendars…CBS is debuting the 49th edition of the veteran Survivor Wednesday, September 24 just as summer mainstay Big Brother is about to conclude.
—Marc Berman, Forbes.com, 20 Aug. 2025
After Moscow launched a war against Ukraine, broke with the West, and pivoted toward non-Western audiences, Putin firmly embraced civilizational discourse, which is now official policy and a mainstay of presidential speeches and even schoolbooks.
—Foreign Affairs, 19 Aug. 2025
The revival series And Just Like That… aired its series finale last night and fans had to bid farewell (again) to mainstays Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker), Miranda Hobbes (Cynthia Nixon) and Charlotte York Goldenblatt (Kristin Davis).
—Carson Blackwelder, People.com, 15 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for mainstay
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James Wallace, New York Times, 22 Aug. 2025
Mark your calendars…CBS is debuting the 49th edition of the veteran Survivor Wednesday, September 24 just as summer mainstay Big Brother is about to conclude.
—Marc Berman, Forbes.com, 20 Aug. 2025
After Moscow launched a war against Ukraine, broke with the West, and pivoted toward non-Western audiences, Putin firmly embraced civilizational discourse, which is now official policy and a mainstay of presidential speeches and even schoolbooks.
—Foreign Affairs, 19 Aug. 2025
The revival series And Just Like That… aired its series finale last night and fans had to bid farewell (again) to mainstays Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker), Miranda Hobbes (Cynthia Nixon) and Charlotte York Goldenblatt (Kristin Davis).
—Carson Blackwelder, People.com, 15 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for mainstay
Cite this Entry
“Mainstay.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mainstay. Accessed 25 Aug. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
mainstay
noun
main·stay
-ˌstā 
1
: a large strong rope running from the maintop of a ship usually to the foot of the foremast
2
: a chief support
the mainstay of the family
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