chain

[ cheyn ]

/ tʃeɪn /

noun

a series of objects connected one after the other, usually in the form of a series of metal rings passing through one another, used either for various purposes requiring a flexible tie with high tensile strength, as for hauling, supporting, or confining, or in various ornamental and decorative forms.

Often chains. something that binds or restrains; bond: the chain of timidity; the chains of loyalty.

chains,

shackles or fetters: to place a prisoner in chains.
bondage; servitude: to live one's life in chains.
Nautical. (in a sailing vessel) the area outboard at the foot of the shrouds of a mast: the customary position of the leadsman in taking soundings.
tire chain.

a series of things connected or following in succession: a chain of events.

a range of mountains.

a number of similar establishments, as banks, theaters, or hotels, under one ownership or management.

Chemistry. two or more atoms of the same element, usually carbon, attached as in a chain. Compare ring¹(def 17).

Surveying, Civil Engineering.

a distance-measuring device consisting of a chain of 100 links of equal length, having a total length either of 66 feet (20 meters) (Gunter's chain or surveyor's chain) or of 100 feet (30 meters) (engineer's chain).
a unit of length equal to either of these.
a graduated steel tape used for distance measurements. Abbreviation: ch

Mathematics. totally ordered set.

Football. a chain 10 yards (9 meters) in length for determining whether a first down has been earned.

verb (used with object)

to fasten or secure with a chain: to chain a dog to a post.

to confine or restrain: His work chained him to his desk.

Surveying. to measure (a distance on the ground) with a chain or tape.

Computers. to link (related items, as records in a file or portions of a program) together, especially so that items can be run in sequence.

to make (a chain stitch or series of chain stitches), as in crocheting.

verb (used without object)

to form or make a chain.

Idioms for chain

drag the chain, Australian Slang. to lag behind or shirk one's fair share of work.

in the chains, Nautical. standing outboard on the channels or in some similar place to heave the lead to take soundings.

Origin of chain

1250–1300; Middle English chayne < Old French chaeine < Latin catēna fetter; see catena

SYNONYMS FOR chain

4 sequence, succession, train, set.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR chain ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM chain

chain·less, adjective chain·like, adjective in·ter·chain, verb (used with object) un·chained, adjective

Words nearby chain

chagrin, chagul, chahar, chai, chaikovski, chain, chain coral, chain drive, chain fern, chain gang, chain gear

Definition for chain (2 of 2)

Chain

[ cheyn ]

/ tʃeɪn /

noun

Sir Ernst Boris

[urnst, ernst] /ɜrnst, ɛrnst/,1906–79, English biochemist, born in Germany: Nobel Prize in Medicine 1945.

Example sentences from the Web for chain

You expect soldiers of all ranks to understand the need to respect the chain of command, regardless of personal feelings.

We Need Our Police to Be Better Than This |Nick Gillespie |December 31, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
Say what you want about Abercrombie & Fitch (A&F), the chain has done something special.

Muslims & Jews Unite vs. Abercrombie & Fitch |Dean Obeidallah |December 16, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
She was also crudely nicknamed “La Boule” in a reference to the ball and chain.

Sight Unseen: Cézanne’s Mysterious Wife |Lizzie Crocker |November 19, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
Cars swarm dangerously around them on this two-lane road carved, literally, into the side of a chain of mountains.

Heart of Darkness: Into Afghanistan’s Taliban Valley |Matt Trevithick, Daniel Seckman |November 15, 2014 |DAILY BEAST

But the chain of death continued in the family after the burial of their mother.

This Man Lost 35 Relatives to Ebola and His Community Wants Him Gone |Wade C.L. Williams |October 30, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
As far as he could see, chain after chain of mountains heaved themselves into his vision.

Moon-Face and Other Stories |Jack London
A chain of snowy peaks stretched from south-west to north-east.

An Explorer's Adventures in Tibet |A. Henry Savage Landor
I must declare to you that to us the Czar is not the only chain that fetters the body of the country.

Mother |Maksim Gorky
Suddenly her hand went up to the chain around her neck and then down to her belt.

The Four Corners Abroad |Amy Ella Blanchard
Then he quieted down and lay very, very still; and the next day the trapper came along and pulled him out by the chain.

Forest Neighbors |William Davenport Hulbert

British Dictionary definitions for chain (1 of 2)

chain

/ (tʃeɪn) /

noun

a flexible length of metal links, used for confining, connecting, pulling, etc, or in jewellery

(usually plural) anything that confines, fetters, or restrains the chains of poverty

Also called: snow chains (usually plural) a set of metal links that fit over the tyre of a motor vehicle to increase traction and reduce skidding on an icy surface

a number of establishments such as hotels, shops, etc, having the same owner or management
(as modifier)a chain store

a series of related or connected facts, events, etc

a series of deals in which each depends on a purchaser selling before being able to buy

(of reasoning) a sequence of arguments each of which takes the conclusion of the preceding as a premise See (as an example) sorites

Also called: Gunter's chain a unit of length equal to 22 yards

Also called: engineer's chain a unit of length equal to 100 feet

chem two or more atoms or groups bonded together so that the configuration of the resulting molecule, ion, or radical resembles a chain See also open chain, ring 1 (def. 18)

geography a series of natural features, esp approximately parallel mountain ranges

off the chain Australian and NZ informal free from responsibility

jerk someone's chain or yank someone's chain informal to tease, mislead, or harass someone

verb

surveying to measure with a chain or tape

(tr often foll by up) to confine, tie, or make fast with or as if with a chain

to sew using chain stitch

Word Origin for chain

C13: from Old French chaine, ultimately from Latin; see catena

British Dictionary definitions for chain (2 of 2)

Chain

/ (tʃeɪn) /

noun

Sir Ernst Boris. 1906–79, British biochemist, born in Germany: purified and adapted penicillin for clinical use; with Fleming and Florey shared the Nobel prize for physiology or medicine 1945

Medical definitions for chain (1 of 2)

chain

[ chān ]

n.

A group of atoms covalently bonded in a spatial configuration like links in a chain.

A linear arrangement of living things such as cells or bacteria.

Medical definitions for chain (2 of 2)

Chain

[ chān ]

Ernst Boris 1906-1979

German-born British biochemist. He shared a 1945 Nobel Prize for isolating and purifying penicillin, discovered in 1928 by Sir Alexander Fleming.

Scientific definitions for chain (1 of 2)

chain

[ chān ]

A group of atoms, often of the same element, bound together in a line, branched line, or ring to form a molecule.♦ In a straight chain, each of the constituent atoms is attached to other single atoms, not to groups of atoms.♦ In a branched chain, side groups are attached to the chain.♦ In a closed chain, the atoms are arranged in the shape of a ring.

Scientific definitions for chain (2 of 2)

Chain

Sir Ernst Boris 1906-1979

German-born British bacteriologist who, with Howard Florey, developed and purified penicillin in 1939. For this work, they shared a 1945 Nobel Prize with Alexander Fleming, who first discovered the antibiotic in 1928.

Idioms and Phrases with chain

chain

In addition to the idioms beginning with chain

chain reaction
chain smoker

also see:

ball and chain
pull someone's chain

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

chain