by and at large

[blouen]

His explanation for the gradual development of such complex systems certainly had its critics, but by and large his ideas were embraced because they helped to explain a great deal of the observable phenomena of our world

What does the text in bold mean?

[David L.]

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[2006]

His explanation for the gradual development of such complex systems certainly had its critics, but by and large his ideas were embraced because they helped to explain a great deal of the observable phenomena of our world

What does the text in bold mean?

"by and large" means to a large extent, to a large degree, largely, generally, as a whole, mostly, overall.