as in hierarchies
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
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.
Recent Examples of food chains
As part of the airport’s nearly $4 billion Terminal 1 renovation project, local restaurants, cafes, fast food chains and specialty stores are landing inside.
—
Abby Hamblin, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Sep. 2025
The buzziest beauty companies looked to grocery shelves and food chains for inspiration this year.
—Sonal Dutt, PEOPLE, 17 Sep. 2025
Right now, convenience stores, liquor stores, bars and fast food chains line most of East Lancaseter.
—Matthew Adams, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 15 Sep. 2025
Through pollination, insects enable the reproduction of flowering plants, including many that form the base of food chains or are agriculturally important to humans.
—Thomas Westerholm, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 Sep. 2025
Other origin stories began at different fast food chains.
—Maria Gracia Santillana Linares, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025
Scientists say these have contaminated the soil, filled our oceans, disrupted food chains and penetrated most people’s organs and bones.
—Jia H. Jung, Mercury News, 31 Aug. 2025
Katie Wiseman Many fast food chains like McDonald's, Chick-fil-a, and Taco Bell serve breakfast in the morning, but only for a limited time.
—Katie Wiseman, The Courier-Journal, 29 Aug. 2025
In a worst-case scenario, escaped mirror organisms could displace essential microbes in soil and water ecosystems, triggering cascading collapses in food chains that support all complex life on Earth.
—Liyam Chitayat, Foreign Affairs, 28 Aug. 2025
Abby Hamblin, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Sep. 2025
The buzziest beauty companies looked to grocery shelves and food chains for inspiration this year.
—Sonal Dutt, PEOPLE, 17 Sep. 2025
Right now, convenience stores, liquor stores, bars and fast food chains line most of East Lancaseter.
—Matthew Adams, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 15 Sep. 2025
Through pollination, insects enable the reproduction of flowering plants, including many that form the base of food chains or are agriculturally important to humans.
—Thomas Westerholm, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 Sep. 2025
Other origin stories began at different fast food chains.
—Maria Gracia Santillana Linares, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025
Scientists say these have contaminated the soil, filled our oceans, disrupted food chains and penetrated most people’s organs and bones.
—Jia H. Jung, Mercury News, 31 Aug. 2025
Katie Wiseman Many fast food chains like McDonald's, Chick-fil-a, and Taco Bell serve breakfast in the morning, but only for a limited time.
—Katie Wiseman, The Courier-Journal, 29 Aug. 2025
In a worst-case scenario, escaped mirror organisms could displace essential microbes in soil and water ecosystems, triggering cascading collapses in food chains that support all complex life on Earth.
—Liyam Chitayat, Foreign Affairs, 28 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for food chains
Noun
-
Begin redesigning your organization now around human skills and phase out traditional hierarchies.—
Preston Fore,
Fortune,
28 Sep. 2025
-
Authority and rulership collapsed, and the familiar structures of the Holy Roman Empire were overturned, exposing the fragility of the existing social and religious hierarchies.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
25 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The pair's influence generally seems to result in a style of hit that Swift has referred to as a glitter gel pen song, one of three metaphorical groupings of music that make up her discography.—
Megan McCluskey,
Time,
2 Oct. 2025
-
Three-receiver sets are the norm for nearly every team on Seattle’s schedule, and Macdonald likes to match those 11 personnel groupings with his three best cover corners.—
Michael-Shawn Dugar,
New York Times,
30 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries have emerged as central figures in the standoff, drawing praise even from critics within their own ranks.—
Amanda Castro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 Oct. 2025
-
Advertisement While many Republicans view the ACA subsidies as a temporary pandemic-era measure that should now lapse, a handful of GOP moderates in Congress have broken ranks.—
Nik Popli,
Time,
1 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Food chains.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/food%20chains. Accessed 5 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share