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]

Originally Posted by 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?

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