What does "maine" mean?
Obsolete form of main.
Maine
/mɛn/ adj, name, noun
adj, name, noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Obsolete form of main.
- Grammar: maine is listed as adj, name, noun.
- Nearest alternatives: pine tree state, regional, state of maine, staterelated.
- Useful contrasts: foreign, nonlocal.
- Usage evidence: The Applachian Trail ends in Maine.
How to use "maine"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "maine" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "maine" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "maine" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "maine" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "maine" is acting as adj, name, noun in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "pine tree state" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "maine", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Obsolete form of main. alt-of, obsolete
"No man is an Iland, intire of it ſelfe; euery man is a peece of the Continent, a part of the maine; […]"
Adjective
- 1 Obsolete form of main. alt-of, not-comparable, obsolete
Proper Noun
- 1 A former province of Pays de la Loire, France. Capital: Le Mans.
- 2 A river in Maine-et-Loire department, Pays de la Loire, France, a tributary of the Loire, flowing 12 km through the city of Angers from the confluence of the Mayenne and Sarthe into the Loire.
- 3 A Scottish and English surname from Old French, a variant of Main.
- 4 A river in County Kerry, Ireland, flowing 43 km from Tobermaing into the Atlantic at Castlemaine.
- 5 A male given name from Old Irish, of historical usage, notably borne by Irish kings Maine mac Cerbaill and Maine mac Néill.
Show 7 more definitions
- 6 Alternative form of Main: A river in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. alt-of, alternative
- 7 A state of the United States; probably named for the province in France. Capital: Augusta. Largest city: Portland.
"These first English migrants to Jamestown endured terrible disease and arrived during a period of drought and colder-than-normal winters. The migrants to Roanoke on the outer banks of Carolina, where the English had gone in the 1580s, disappeared. And a brief effort to settle the coast of Maine in 1607 and 1608 failed because of an unusually bitter winter."
- 8 A village in Marathon County, Wisconsin; named for county sheriff Uriah E. Maine.
- 9 A town in New York.
- 10 A town in Outagamie County, Wisconsin; named for the state.
- 11 A river in Maine, United States, flowing 5.5 miles from Pocomoonshine Lake in Princeton into Crawford Lake in Crawford.
- 12 University of Maine.
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"The Applachian Trail ends in Maine."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "maine"?
Common synonyms include: pine tree state, regional, state of maine, staterelated.
How do you use "maine" in a sentence?
The Applachian Trail ends in Maine.
How do you pronounce "maine"?
Pronounced /mɛn/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
The US state is from French Maine, named by its French explorers after the province in France with the same name; unrelated to the name of the river that flows through it. From Old French Cemaine, from Latin *Cenomania, from the name of the Gaulish Cenomani tribe of Gallia Celtica. The word was rebracketed as ce (“this”) + Maine, and the ce- was lost by the 12th century.
Etymology 2
From French Maine, from earlier Maienne, from Latin Meduāna, of uncertain origin. Doublet of Mayenne. Unrelated to the French province of the same name.
Etymology 3
From Irish An Mhaing
Etymology 4
From Old Irish Maine.