Ah, a main idea of a story is like a happy little tree at the center of your painting. It guides all the other elements and gives your painting its unique flavor. The word you're looking for is "theme," my friend. Just like how a touch of color can bring a whole painting together, the theme ties the story's elements into a beautiful masterpiece.
theme
The main idea.
The word is Theme. Aristotle calls it the Thought.
You have not provided the word. To answer a question we need a who, where, what, when, and how question.
The word sought may be tangent, addition, or possibly a sidebar (secondary focus).
In literature, a theme is the main topic or idea in a story. It can be a point an author is trying to communicate that may be stated directly or indirectly in the story.
The main idea that a story is built on. A universal truth of the human heart. Theme is the basic message of the story, like the morals of Aesop's Fables. You can find theme by asking yourself 'What is the author trying to tell the readers?" or "What is the message of this story?" It's not usually stated directly, but you can find the theme by looking for things that are stressed or repeated in the story. The official definition of the word theme is "the subject of a talk, a piece of writing, a person's thoughts, or an exhibition; a topic."
Central theme or main concept.
The central idea or lesson of a story is the main theme or moral that the author is trying to convey to the reader. It is the underlying message that ties the story together and provides meaning or insight into the characters, plot, or setting.
a theme..?
The word main has one syllable.
What is the main idea of the story? The main character in that novel is the mother, Catherine Grayson. The day after the storm, the city workers removed all of the snow from the main highways and had only the side streets left to plow.