Word.ws English Dictionary

mainsprings

mainsprings is the plural of mainspring.

Meaning of mainspring

Noun

mainspring (plural mainsprings)

  1. The principal spring of a clockwork mechanism, which drives it by uncoiling.
    • He was wise, for he had seen a long succession of mechanical toys arrive to boast and swagger, and by-and-by break their mainsprings and pass away.1921 June, Margery Williams, “The Velveteen Rabbit: Or How Toys Become Real”, in Harper’s Bazar, volume LVI, number 6 (2504 overall), New York, N.Y.: International Magazine Company, →ISSN, →OCLC
  2. (figuratively) The most important reason for, or element of, something.
    • My daughter is the mainspring of my life.

Questions about mainsprings

What is mainsprings the plural of?
Mainsprings is the plural of mainspring.

Words near mainsprings in the dictionary

  1. mainspan
  2. mainspans
  3. mainspar
  4. mainspars
  5. mainspring
  6. mainsprings
  7. mainstage
  8. mainstages
  9. mainstay
  10. mainstays
  11. mainstem

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: mainsprings (page history and authors); mainspring (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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