food chain

Definition of food chainnext
as in hierarchy
a series of types of living things in which each one uses the next lower member of the series as a source of food Sharks eat fish that are lower in the food chain. animals that are at the top of the food chain

Related Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for food chain
Noun
  • Throughout the nine tracks, which range from haunting to playful and toy with auto-tune, Malone examines relationship hierarchies and expectations.
    Ilana Kaplan, PEOPLE, 11 May 2026
  • From a young age, many people absorb a simple hierarchy of emotions.
    Wyles Daniel, USA Today, 11 May 2026
Noun
  • The student center features comfortable leather furniture – easier to clean up spills – arranged in groupings so students could chat with each other, perhaps study together, perhaps even just take a nap.
    Doug Ross, Chicago Tribune, 28 Apr. 2026
  • When in a forest, stay in proximity to shorter tree groupings.
    STAR-TELEGRAM WEATHER BOT, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 28 Apr. 2026
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Food chain.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/food%20chain. Accessed 12 May. 2026.

More from Merriam-Webster on food chain

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster