main·stream
ˈmān-ˌstrēm 
: a prevailing current or direction of activity or influence
mainstream
adjective
main·stream
: having, reflecting, or being compatible with the prevailing attitudes and values of a society or group
mainstream media
movies that appeal to a mainstream audience
mainstream success
main·stream
ˈmān-ˈstrēm
mainstreamed; mainstreaming; mainstreams
1
: to place (a student, such as a disabled child) in regular school classes
2
: to incorporate in the mainstream
Examples of mainstream in a Sentence
Verb
The poor should be mainstreamed into the private health-insurance system.
Ideas that were once controversial have now become mainstreamed.
Recent Examples on the Web
Beatriz Ríos, Washington Post, 10 Apr. 2024
Many conservatives complain that mainstream churches—Catholic and Protestant alike—have grown soft and spineless.
—Robert F. Worth, The Atlantic, 10 Apr. 2024
The guide offers examples of racists tropes and stereotypes that have been persistent for Latino characters in mainstream film and TV.
—Cynthia Littleton, Variety, 8 Apr. 2024
Few scenes in Nashville and beyond are as vibrant and exciting as the red-hot Red Dirt movement presently transforming once-regional names like Parker McCollum, who performed on the CMT Awards, and Zach Bryan, who did not, into mainstream stars.
—Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 8 Apr. 2024
Broken feedback loop Many Tesla veterans distrust mainstream media, believing coverage has been consistently unfair, and suspect much is the result of rival automakers buying negative headlines with their advertising dollars.
—Christiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 5 Apr. 2024
But their assessment provokes more critical exploration into the conditional nature of mainstream support for Black businesses.
—Ebony Flake, Essence, 4 Apr. 2024
The recent furor over the whereabouts of Catherine, Princess of Wales, better known as Kate Middleton, shows how easily online groups can drift into conspiracy theories, and how those theories, in turn, can surge into mainstream culture.
—Amanda Taub, New York Times, 29 Mar. 2024
This is not far from becoming a mainstream reality.
—Neil Sahota, Forbes, 27 Mar. 2024
Liz Sanchez, Los Angeles Times, 11 Apr. 2024
Wishing Netanyahu gone is the most mainstream position possible — and one sincere friends of Israel should never be afraid to express.
—Bret Stephens, The Mercury News, 11 Apr. 2024
But his emphasis on a shared Chinese identity is increasingly out of tune with mainstream sentiment in Taiwan, where less than 3% of the population now identify primarily as Chinese, and under 10% support an immediate or eventual unification.
—Nectar Gan, CNN, 10 Apr. 2024
Perhaps the most troubling possibility is that Kirill’s Church, with its canny blend of politics and faith, turns out to be better adapted to survival in our century than mainstream Churches are.
—Robert F. Worth, The Atlantic, 10 Apr. 2024
But speaking of Team Evolve, will the next album project be a pivot back to more obviously mainstream fare, or…?
—Chris Willman, Variety, 7 Apr. 2024
The country-rap star, originally from Athens, Georgia, gained mainstream notoriety in 2019 after earning five consecutive top 10 debuts on Billboard's Top Country albums chart.
—Mirna Alsharif, NBC News, 6 Apr. 2024
Trending on Billboard The current lay of the land for country music is one of the most fascinating in mainstream music – particularly for Ken Burns, who directed 2019’s Country Music, an eight-part documentary series chronicling the history and evolution of country in American culture.
—Kyle Denis, Billboard, 3 Apr. 2024
The lens won't have any problem keeping up with the more mainstream 33MP sensors in the a7C II and a7 IV.
Mirrorless cameras leverage automatic corrections to compensate for distortion and vignette.
—PCMAG, 28 Mar. 2024
Leo Barraclough, Variety, 10 Apr. 2024
That was before graffiti moved from countercultural to mainstream.
—Isabella Kwai, New York Times, 31 Mar. 2024
Trending on Billboard Odunsi (The Engine) recruited underground and mainstream international artists as well as producers and engineers for his innovative Leather Park music camp, which took place in Paris Fashion Week last year.
—Heran Mamo, Billboard, 28 Mar. 2024
Matze launched Parler for the first time in 2018 as a free speech alternative to mainstream social media platforms like Twitter, now X, and Facebook.
—Makena Kelly, WIRED, 20 Mar. 2024
Long an anathema to mainstream politicians, Mr. Wilders has been at the center of coalition negotiations in the months since his decisive election victory in November.
—Claire Moses, New York Times, 13 Mar. 2024
Such questions exploded from Reddit threads and tabloid pages to mainstream news outlets last month when William cited personal matters as his reason for missing the funeral of his late godfather, King Constantine of Greece.
—Matt Brennan, Los Angeles Times, 10 Mar. 2024
If the sports app really is a nascent sports-betting venture—still a big if—that would be the final confirmation of gambling’s acceptance into mainstream American culture, and a move that would mainstream gambling even more.
—Jacob Stern, The Atlantic, 2 Mar. 2024
This system, although not mainstream in the United States, makes for much longer-lasting carts and fewer wobbly wheels.
—Eva Rothenberg, CNN, 17 Feb. 2024
Noun
In recent years, anti-migrant sentiment has soared across the continent, and the far right has seized on it, pushing the issue into the political mainstream and narrowing that gap.
—Beatriz Ríos, Washington Post, 10 Apr. 2024
Many conservatives complain that mainstream churches—Catholic and Protestant alike—have grown soft and spineless.
—Robert F. Worth, The Atlantic, 10 Apr. 2024
The guide offers examples of racists tropes and stereotypes that have been persistent for Latino characters in mainstream film and TV.
—Cynthia Littleton, Variety, 8 Apr. 2024
Few scenes in Nashville and beyond are as vibrant and exciting as the red-hot Red Dirt movement presently transforming once-regional names like Parker McCollum, who performed on the CMT Awards, and Zach Bryan, who did not, into mainstream stars.
—Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 8 Apr. 2024
Broken feedback loop Many Tesla veterans distrust mainstream media, believing coverage has been consistently unfair, and suspect much is the result of rival automakers buying negative headlines with their advertising dollars.
—Christiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 5 Apr. 2024
But their assessment provokes more critical exploration into the conditional nature of mainstream support for Black businesses.
—Ebony Flake, Essence, 4 Apr. 2024
The recent furor over the whereabouts of Catherine, Princess of Wales, better known as Kate Middleton, shows how easily online groups can drift into conspiracy theories, and how those theories, in turn, can surge into mainstream culture.
—Amanda Taub, New York Times, 29 Mar. 2024
This is not far from becoming a mainstream reality.
—Neil Sahota, Forbes, 27 Mar. 2024
Adjective
The blistering menace of their production, their shockingly aggressive and raunchy subject matter, and their cinematic narratives of L.A. street life ultimately created the blueprint for mainstream West Coast hip-hop.
—Liz Sanchez, Los Angeles Times, 11 Apr. 2024
Wishing Netanyahu gone is the most mainstream position possible — and one sincere friends of Israel should never be afraid to express.
—Bret Stephens, The Mercury News, 11 Apr. 2024
But his emphasis on a shared Chinese identity is increasingly out of tune with mainstream sentiment in Taiwan, where less than 3% of the population now identify primarily as Chinese, and under 10% support an immediate or eventual unification.
—Nectar Gan, CNN, 10 Apr. 2024
Perhaps the most troubling possibility is that Kirill’s Church, with its canny blend of politics and faith, turns out to be better adapted to survival in our century than mainstream Churches are.
—Robert F. Worth, The Atlantic, 10 Apr. 2024
But speaking of Team Evolve, will the next album project be a pivot back to more obviously mainstream fare, or…?
—Chris Willman, Variety, 7 Apr. 2024
The country-rap star, originally from Athens, Georgia, gained mainstream notoriety in 2019 after earning five consecutive top 10 debuts on Billboard's Top Country albums chart.
—Mirna Alsharif, NBC News, 6 Apr. 2024
Trending on Billboard The current lay of the land for country music is one of the most fascinating in mainstream music – particularly for Ken Burns, who directed 2019’s Country Music, an eight-part documentary series chronicling the history and evolution of country in American culture.
—Kyle Denis, Billboard, 3 Apr. 2024
The lens won't have any problem keeping up with the more mainstream 33MP sensors in the a7C II and a7 IV.
Mirrorless cameras leverage automatic corrections to compensate for distortion and vignette.
—PCMAG, 28 Mar. 2024
Verb
Since then, surfing has transitioned from countercultural pastime to mainstream sport.
—Leo Barraclough, Variety, 10 Apr. 2024
That was before graffiti moved from countercultural to mainstream.
—Isabella Kwai, New York Times, 31 Mar. 2024
Trending on Billboard Odunsi (The Engine) recruited underground and mainstream international artists as well as producers and engineers for his innovative Leather Park music camp, which took place in Paris Fashion Week last year.
—Heran Mamo, Billboard, 28 Mar. 2024
Matze launched Parler for the first time in 2018 as a free speech alternative to mainstream social media platforms like Twitter, now X, and Facebook.
—Makena Kelly, WIRED, 20 Mar. 2024
Long an anathema to mainstream politicians, Mr. Wilders has been at the center of coalition negotiations in the months since his decisive election victory in November.
—Claire Moses, New York Times, 13 Mar. 2024
Such questions exploded from Reddit threads and tabloid pages to mainstream news outlets last month when William cited personal matters as his reason for missing the funeral of his late godfather, King Constantine of Greece.
—Matt Brennan, Los Angeles Times, 10 Mar. 2024
If the sports app really is a nascent sports-betting venture—still a big if—that would be the final confirmation of gambling’s acceptance into mainstream American culture, and a move that would mainstream gambling even more.
—Jacob Stern, The Atlantic, 2 Mar. 2024
This system, although not mainstream in the United States, makes for much longer-lasting carts and fewer wobbly wheels.
—Eva Rothenberg, CNN, 17 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'mainstream.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near mainstream
Cite this Entry
“Mainstream.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mainstream. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
mainstream
adjective
main·stream
ˌmān-ˌstrēm
: relating to or being tobacco smoke that is drawn (as from a cigarette) directly into the mouth of the smoker and is usually inhaled into the lungs compare sidestream
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