メイン

めいん
noun, pre-noun adjectival
main, primary
1. main, primary, central
The most important or prominent element among several. Used as a modifier before nouns.
メインの料理(りょうり)は何(なん)ですか。
What's the main dish?
今回(こんかい)のメインテーマは環境(かんきょう)問題(もんだい)だ。
The main theme this time is environmental issues.
このイベントのメインキャラクターは子(こ)どもたちに大人気(だいにんき)だ。
The main character of this event is hugely popular with children.

Usage

メイン functions primarily as a noun modifier (メインの～ or メイン～). It is the standard way to say "main" in modern Japanese and is used much more frequently than its Japanese equivalent 主要(しゅよう)な in casual speech.

Variant

The older spelling マイン is sometimes seen but メイン is now standard.

Common collocations

Related Words

Related: メインディッシュ (main dish)
Antonym: サブ (sub)
general
Added 2026.2.14 14:12 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:01
11000/11164_mein