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
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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.
—
Carlos Rico, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 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
Katie Wiseman Several 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, IndyStar, 25 Aug. 2025
Food blogger markie_devo, who has correctly predicted or leaked new menu items for various food chains across the country, shared a post which stated a list of the fall menu items.
—Grace Tucker, The Enquirer, 19 Aug. 2025
Carlos Rico, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 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
Katie Wiseman Several 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, IndyStar, 25 Aug. 2025
Food blogger markie_devo, who has correctly predicted or leaked new menu items for various food chains across the country, shared a post which stated a list of the fall menu items.
—Grace Tucker, The Enquirer, 19 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for food chains
Noun
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The Wax Child is about the dread of living in brutal hierarchies, and the shapes that friendship and protection take to counteract these grim realities.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
8 Sep. 2025
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Jobs across industry sectors and corporate hierarchies are threatened with AI replacement.—
Michael Peregrine,
Forbes.com,
7 Sep. 2025
Noun
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When in a forest, stay in proximity to shorter tree groupings.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
12 Sep. 2025
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The layout, designed by architect Lek Bunnag, boasts groupings of villas and semi-private pools with a main central Moon Pool and bar located on the cliffside.—
Alissa Fitzgerald,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Pundits have always dominated the ranks of posters on social media, but now the masses of silent followers are declining, and continued posting risks preaching to accounts of the converted, the disengaged, or the defunct.—
Kyle Chayka,
New Yorker,
10 Sep. 2025
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First of all, the franchise has tended to pull its season leads from its own ranks over the years, with many Bachelorette stars having previously competed on The Bachelor, and vice versa.—
Jon Blistein,
Rolling Stone,
10 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Food chains.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/food%20chains. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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