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 hamburger chain bought Del Taco in 2022 in a $575 million deal, looking to capitalize on the Mexican food chain's drive-thru foothold. —Savyata Mishra, USA Today, 25 Apr. 2025

Road trips are the perfect excuse to give in to cravings, and more often than not, that means pulling over for a bite at a beloved fast food chain. —Symiah Dorsey, Southern Living, 19 Apr. 2025

In 2025, that may be the most radical message a fast food chain can send. —Stephanie Gravalese, Forbes.com, 16 Apr. 2025

Once Wendy's posted about wanting to send Perry back to space following the Blue Origin mission, Kesha seemingly took a trip to one of the fast food chain's locations. —Jack Irvin, People.com, 15 Apr. 2025

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