blockchain

noun

block·​chain ˈbläk-ˌchān 

: a digital database containing information (such as records of financial transactions) that can be simultaneously used and shared within a large decentralized, publicly accessible network

also : the technology used to create such a database

The technology at the heart of bitcoin and other virtual currencies, blockchain is an open, distributed ledger that can record transactions between two parties efficiently and in a verifiable and permanent way.

—Marco Iansiti and Karim R. Lakhani

Examples of blockchain in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

No amount of political pressure can erase transactions on the blockchain. —Nic Puckrin, Fortune, 2 Apr. 2026

Its footprint in digital assets spans crypto ETFs, traditional funds tokenized on public blockchains and partnerships with major crypto industry platers like Binance. —Tanaya MacHeel, CNBC, 1 Apr. 2026

Malware deployed via seemingly innocent GitHub repositories and embedded in blockchains, where the malware will be stored forever (and increasingly difficult to root out as the chains grow), makes for an almost unstoppable technology. —Jessica Klein, PC Magazine, 28 Mar. 2026

Much of that was driven by everybody’s favorite blockchain currency, Bitcoin, which fell from a high of over $126,000 in early October to below $63,000 in February. —Joe Wilkins Published Mar 18, Futurism, 18 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

2011, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for blockchain

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