food chain

noun

1

: an arrangement of the organisms of an ecological community according to the order of predation in which each uses the next usually lower member as a food source

2

: a hierarchy based on power or importance

at the top of the corporate food chain

Examples of food chain in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The fast food chain will soon serve up nuggets, fries and Frostys in the brand’s original yellow cups and boxes, the company confirmed. — Saleen Martin, USA Today, 15 Sep. 2026

The fast food chain also rolled out a new menu item earlier this year, releasing the Honey Brown Butter Bacon Egg & Cheese Biscuit on July 21 for a limited time. — Chiara Kim, PEOPLE, 11 Sep. 2026

Join the docents for a leisurely 90-minute walk to learn about the complex food chain of sea and land creatures, with special attention on local snakes. — Ut Community Press, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 Sep. 2026

Their concentrations then increase at successively higher trophic levels (levels of the food chain) as organisms consume contaminated prey. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 3 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1920, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for food chain

• abstain
• airplane
• alkane
• arcane
• arraign
• attain
• backplane
• betaine
• biplane
• blockchain
• butane
• campaign

Kids Definition

food chain

noun

: a series of organisms in which each uses the next usually lower member of the series as a food source