mainlined; mainlining; mainlines
slang
: to take by or as if by injecting into a principal vein
slang
: to mainline a narcotic drug
: being part of an established group
also
: being in the mainstream
1
: a principal highway or railroad line
2
slang
: a principal vein of the circulatory system
Examples of mainline in a Sentence
Verb
His addiction grew worse when he began mainlining.
Recent Examples on the Web
Chris Baker, WIRED, 25 July 2024
If Perry meant to mainline herself into the cultural conversation, mission somewhat accomplished.
—David Browne, Rolling Stone, 17 July 2024
Ash Parrish, The Verge, 22 July 2024
The partnership would mandate either Maersk or Hapag-Lloyd to act as the sole operator of a vessel on a mainline service to reduce complexity on the routes.
—Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 16 July 2024
Daniel McFadin, arkansasonline.com, 1 Aug. 2024
Cast iron pipes — 20% of the city’s distribution system — accounts for 85% to 90% of main line breaks, according to Reed.
—Jaime Moore-Carrillo, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 19 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for mainline 
Verb
Is this high-context content going to flummox the average viewer who hasn’t spent the last 25 years mainlining every single piece of good superhero content, let alone all of the so-bad-it’s-good or downright lousy stuff?
—Chris Baker, WIRED, 25 July 2024
If Perry meant to mainline herself into the cultural conversation, mission somewhat accomplished.
—David Browne, Rolling Stone, 17 July 2024
Adjective
With his victory, Woodley became the first American to win a mainline Street Fighter tournament at Evo in over 20 years.
—Ash Parrish, The Verge, 22 July 2024
The partnership would mandate either Maersk or Hapag-Lloyd to act as the sole operator of a vessel on a mainline service to reduce complexity on the routes.
—Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 16 July 2024
Noun
The Union Pacific spokesperson said the incident did not impact the railroad's main line.
—Daniel McFadin, arkansasonline.com, 1 Aug. 2024
Cast iron pipes — 20% of the city’s distribution system — accounts for 85% to 90% of main line breaks, according to Reed.
—Jaime Moore-Carrillo, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 19 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for mainline
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'mainline.' 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 mainline
Cite this Entry
“Mainline.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mainline. Accessed 19 Aug. 2024.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
mainline
1 of 2 verb
main·line
ˈmān-ˈlīn 
mainlined; mainlining
slang
: to take by or as if by injecting into a principal vein
slang
: to mainline a narcotic drug (as heroin)
main line
2 of 2 noun
slang
: a principal vein of the circulatory system
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