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

Wendy’s — Shares rallied more than 23% after The Financial Times reported , citing people familiar with the matter, that Nelson Peltz’s Trian Fund Management was looking to raise funds for a bid to take the fast food chain private. —Sarah Min, CNBC, 12 May 2026

Fast food chains have struggled against rising operational costs and increasingly cost-conscious customers. —Itzel Luna, Los Angeles Times, 12 May 2026

The fast food chain is a backer of the Trackhouse Racing team, and one of its drivers Shane van Gisbergen on May 10 defended last year's win at the New York track with another victory. —Mike Snider, USA Today, 12 May 2026

One of Knudson-Freeman’s many knacks was research and development, according to Freeman, saying his mother always wanted the food chain’s menu to be craveable. —Corey Schmidt, Sacbee.com, 10 May 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