Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
all-mains

all-mains

8.7
Able to work on different household voltages in many countries
  • adjective
  • Archaic
translation icon : multitensión
  • This all-mains radio works perfectly in any country.

Examples

  • The old radio in my grandfather's study is an all-mains model that works wherever you plug it in.

  • Many British radios from the mid-20th century were marketed as all-mains sets for convenience.

  • Collectors often look for all-mains radios because of their versatility with power sources.

  • The all-mains device automatically adjusts to local voltage.

  • Collectors often seek all-mains radios because they can be used with any power source.

  • The old radio in my grandfather's study is an all-mains model that functions in any location.

  • This all-mains appliance easily operates on various voltage levels, making it very convenient.

How Powered

all-mains
  • Archaic
8.7
powered
3.5
unpowered
1 4.4

Surface Forms

all-mains positive

Morphology

all-mains = all + mains (transparent) = all + mains

The hyphenated compound 'all-mains' is directly built from 'all' + 'mains' and straightforwardly means 'for all mains voltages'.

Etymology

All-mains comes from the parts all and mains, and mains is the common British word for the household electricity 'supply' or 'power', like the 'main' in 'main road' meaning the most important one. So an all-mains device can use 'all' the standard mains voltages and will work wherever you plug it in.