main course

noun

1. Nautical.,  a square mainsail.

2. the principal dish or course of a meal, typically including meat or fish.

main course

noun

1. the principal dish of a meal

2. nautical a square mainsail

Word History and Origins

Origin of main course¹

First recorded in 1505–15

Example Sentences

The main course, a whole fried sea bream, served with a ginger fish sauce caramel, peanuts, herbs, lemon, and wild pepper leaves to delicately wrap each fried morsel, truly blew me away.

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So if you fire up the grill this weekend — even attempting one of Ramsay’s barbecue favorites — still, make sunscreen the main course.

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With a sweet tooth that often leads me to scan the dessert menu before the main course, I find myself calculating exactly how much room to save.

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It all comes back to that lesson from Prune: raw produce isn’t just something to snack on while waiting for the main course.

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The main course: sea bass roasted with lemon and herbs.

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