1. in the main - Adverb
2. in the main - Phrase
for the most part
without distinction of one from others
Source: WordNetIt is indeed very possible, that the Persons we laugh at may in the main of their Characters be much wiser Men than our selves; but if they would have us laugh at them, they must fall short of us in those Respects which stir up this Passion. Joseph Addison
There are men who could neither be distressed nor won into a sacrifice of their duty; but this stern virtue is the growth of few soils; and in the main it will be found that a power over a man's support is a power over his will. Alexander Hamilton
In the wake of a Big Change, cultures and individuals are transposed, it's true, yet in the main they continue much as they were, except for the usual scattering of unfortunate but statistically meaningless accidents. Fritz Leiber
Concerning his own rages, I am convinced that they are not real, that they are sometimes experiments, but that in the main they are the habits of a pose or attitude he has seen fit to take toward his fellowman. Jack London
He said that humanity in the main was crass, stupid, boorish and vulgar, and that I could learn at least this much from you. Jack Vance
It is easy to forget that in the main we die only seven times more slowly than our dogs. Jim Harrison