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
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Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for food chain
Noun
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South Africa’s Standard Bank aims to be Kenya’s biggest lender by 2030, its regional chief told Semafor, a rare public shot at climbing East Africa’s banking hierarchy as the International Monetary Fund warns that the region’s economic buffers are dangerously fragile.—
Tiisetso Motsoeneng,
semafor.com,
15 June 2026 -
The hierarchy there is that the younger players very much look up to the senior players.—
Oliver Kay,
New York Times,
14 June 2026
Noun
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The Consumer Reports investigation found even wider price discrepancies than CBS LA's investigation, with the median difference between the lowest and highest price groupings landing at about 50%.—
Kristine Lazar,
CBS News,
16 June 2026
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Fuel accounts for roughly 15% to 30% of the total cost of food, according to the Independent Grocers Alliance, a grouping of 7,500 global supermarkets.—
Mae Anderson,
Chicago Tribune,
16 June 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Food chain.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/food%20chain. Accessed 19 Jun. 2026.
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