chain

I. chain¹ S3 W2 /tʃeɪn/ BrE AmE noun
[Date: 1200-1300; Language: Old French; Origin: chaeine, from Latin catena]
1. JOINED RINGS [uncountable and countable] a series of metal rings which are joined together in a line and used for fastening things, supporting weights, decoration etc ⇨ link:
She had a gold chain around her neck.
a length of heavy chain
the Mayor’s chain of office (=a decoration worn by some British officials at ceremonies)
pull the chain British English (=flush the toilet)
a bicycle chain (=that makes the wheels turn) ⇨ ↑jewellery
2. CONNECTED EVENTS [countable] a connected series of events or actions, especially which lead to a final result:
the chain of events that led to World War I
The salesmen are just one link in the chain (=part of a process) of distribution.
a rather complicated chain of reasoning ⇨ ↑chain of command, ↑food chain
3. SHOPS/HOTELS [countable] a number of shops, hotels, cinemas etc owned or managed by the same company or person
chain of
a chain of restaurants
hotel/restaurant/retail etc chain
several major UK supermarket chains ⇨ ↑chain store
4. CONNECTED LINE [countable] people or things which are connected or next to each other forming a line
mountain/island chain
the Andean mountain chain
chain of atoms/molecules etc technical:
a chain of amino acids
They formed a human chain (=a line of people who pass things from one person to the next) to move the equipment.
daisy chains (=flowers tied together)
5. PRISONERS [countable usually plural] metal chains fastened to the legs and arms of a prisoner, to prevent them from escaping
in chains
He was led away in chains.
ball and chain (=a chain attached to someone’s ankle at one end with a heavy metal ball at the other)
6. BUYING A HOUSE [countable usually singular] British English a number of people buying houses, where each person must complete the sale of their own house before they can buy the next person’s house
• • •
COLLOCATIONS (for Meaning 3)
■ types of chain
▪ a big/major/large chain It is one of Europe’s biggest clothing chains.
▪ a hotel chain Hilton is an international hotel chain.
▪ a supermarket chain Many people buy all their food at one of the major supermarket chains.
▪ a retail chain (=one whose business is buying and selling goods) Large retail chains usually want to expand and build more stores.
▪ a department store/video store/food store etc chain Morgan was the owner of a computer store chain.
▪ a restaurant chain the Pizza Hut restaurant chain
▪ a grocery chain These are two of Florida’s largest grocery chains.
▪ a fast-food chain the fast-food chain, Burger King
▪ a national/nationwide chain He was head of a national chain of grocery stores.
■ phrases
▪ be part of a chain The hotel is part of the MacDonald chain.
• • •
COLLOCATIONS (for Meaning 4)
■ types of chain
▪ a mountain chain The town of Besançon lies at the end of the Jura mountain chain.
▪ an island chain the island chain from Asia to Australasia
▪ a human chain (=a large number of people who form a line, a circle etc to do something) Riot police formed human chains to block demonstrators.
▪ a chain of atoms/molecules etc technical: Most fabrics are made of long chains of molecules.
■ verbs
▪ form a chain They formed a human chain passing buckets of water to the fire.
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ mountain a very high hill: the highest mountain in Austria
▪ hill an area of land that is higher than the land around it, which is like a mountain but smaller and usually has a rounded top: We went for a walk in the hills. | The house is surrounded by woods, farmland and gentle hills.
▪ Mount (also Mt written abbreviation) used in the names of mountains. Don’t say ‘Fuji Mountain’ – say ‘Mount Fuji’: Mount Everest
▪ cliff the steep side of an area of land, often next to the sea: the white cliffs of Dover
▪ precipice especially literary a very steep and dangerous cliff: They were standing on the edge of a precipice.
▪ crag a high steep rock or mountain: An eagle sailed over the high crags.
▪ ridge a long narrow area of high ground, especially at the top of a mountain: I could see a group of climbers high up on a ridge.
▪ knoll a small round hill: a grassy knoll
▪ volcano a mountain with a large hole at the top, through which ↑lava (=hot liquid rock) is sometimes forced out: the eruption of a volcano
▪ summit the very highest point of a mountain: the summit of Mt Everest
▪ peak especially literary the top of a mountain: the snow-covered peaks of the Himalayas | a distant peak
▪ range/chain a group of mountains or hills arranged in a line: the mountain range that is part of the border between Norway and Sweden
▪ foothills a group of smaller hills below a range of high mountains: the Sierra foothills

Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

chain

chain [chain chains chained chaining] noun, verb [tʃeɪn] [tʃeɪn]

noun

METAL RINGS
1. countable, uncountable a series of connected metal rings, used for pulling or fastening things; a length of chain used for a particular purpose
• a short length of chain
• She wore a heavy gold chain around her neck.
• The mayor wore his chain of office.
• a bicycle chain

• The prisoners were kept in chains (= with chains around their arms and legs, to prevent them from escaping).

CONNECTED THINGS

2. countable a series of connected things or people
• to set in motion a chain of events
• a chain of command (= a system in an organization by which instructions are passed from one person to another)
• mountain/island chains
• Volunteers formed a human chain to rescue precious items from the burning house.

see also food chain

OF SHOPS/HOTELS

3. countable a group of shops/stores or hotels owned by the same company

• a chain of supermarkets/a supermarket chain

RESTRICTION

4. countable, usually plural (formal or literary) a thing that restricts sb's freedom or ability to do sth

• the chains of fear/misery

IN HOUSE BUYING

5. countable, usually singular (BrE) a situation in which a number of people selling and buying houses must each complete the sale of their house before buying from the next person
see ball and chain at ball _n., a link in the chain at link _n., the weak link (in the chain) at weak
Word Origin:
Middle English: from Old French chaine, chaeine, from Latin catena ‘a chain’.
Thesaurus:
chain noun C
• It was all part of a chain of events.
series • • sequence • • string • • succession • • line • |especially BrE catalogue •
a chain/series/sequence/string/succession/line/catalogue of sth
a chain/series/sequence/string/succession of events
a/an long/endless/continuous/unbroken chain/series/sequence/string/succession/line
Example Bank:
• Let the dog off its chain.
• Our suppliers are the weakest link in the chain.
• Put the chain on the door before you go to bed.
• She wore a long gold chain around her neck.
• The mayor was wearing his chain of office.
• The people formed a human chain to pass the supplies up the beach.
• The prisoner was led away in chains.
• There has been an unbroken chain of great violinists in the family.
• They kept the dog on a chain all day long.
• This hotel is part of a large chain.
• a chain of clothes shops
• a chain of department stores
• a chain of volcanic islands
• efforts to ensure that dioxins do not enter the food chain
• the complex chain of events that led to the war
• I was next in the chain of command.
• If any part of the chain of infection is broken, the spread of the disease will be stopped.
• It's important to make sure the chain of communication is not broken.
• Middlemen are important links in the chain.
• She was personally involved in this chain of events.

• Volunteers formed a human chain to pass buckets of water to each other.

Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary

Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary - 4th Edition

chain / tʃeɪn / noun [ C ] (CONNECTED THINGS)

B2 a set of connected or related things:

She has built up a chain of 180 bookshops across the country.

His resignation was followed by a remarkable chain of events .

chain / tʃeɪn / noun (RINGS)

A2 [ C or U ] (a length of) rings usually made of metal that are connected together and used for fastening, pulling, supporting, or limiting freedom, or as jewellery:

The gates were locked with a padlock and a heavy steel chain.

Put the chain on the door if you are alone in the house.

Mary was wearing a beautiful silver chain around her neck.

See picture plug

in chains tied with chains:

The hostages were kept in chains for 23 hours a day.

[ plural ] a fact or situation that limits a person's freedom:

At last the country has freed itself from the chains of the authoritarian regime.

chain / tʃeɪn / noun UK (HOUSE SALE)

[ C ] a situation in which someone selling their house cannot complete the sale because the person who wants to buy it needs to sell their house first:

Some sellers refuse to exchange contracts with buyers who are in a chain.

Collins Advanced Learner’s English Dictionary

chain

[tʃe͟ɪn]
♦♦♦
chains, chaining, chained
1) N-COUNT A chain consists of metal rings connected together in a line.
  His open shirt revealed a fat gold chain...
  The dogs were leaping and growling at the full stretch of their chains.
2) N-PLURAL: in N If prisoners are in chains, they have thick rings of metal round their wrists or ankles to prevent them from escaping.
  He'd spent four and a half years in windowless cells, much of the time in chains.
3) N-PLURAL: oft N of n You can refer to feelings and duties which prevent you from doing what you want to do as chains. [LITERARY]
  He had to break right now the chains of habit that bound him to the present.
  Syn:
  fetters
4) VERB If a person or thing is chained to something, they are fastened to it with a chain.
  [be V-ed to n] The dog was chained to the leg of the one solid garden seat...
  [V n to n] She chained her bike to the railings...
  [V n to n] Some demonstrators chained themselves to railings inside the court building...
  [V-ed] We were sitting together in our cell, chained to the wall. [Also V n adv/prep]
  Syn:
  tie
PHRASAL VERB
Chain up means the same as chain. V n P I'll lock the doors and chain you up... V-ed P They kept me chained up every night and released me each day... Also V P n (not pron) V-ed P All the rowing boats were chained up.
5) N-COUNT: N of n A chain of things is a group of them existing or arranged in a line.
  ...a chain of islands known as the Windward Islands...
  Students tried to form a human chain around the parliament.
6) N-COUNT: with supp A chain of shops, hotels, or other businesses is a number of them owned by the same person or company.
  ...a large supermarket chain.
  ...Italy's leading chain of cinemas.
7) N-SING: N of n A chain of events is a series of them happening one after another.
  ...the bizarre chain of events that led to his departure in January 1938.
  Syn:
  series
8) → See also food chain
  Phrasal Verbs:
  - chain up

Merriam-Webster's Advanced Learner's Dictionary

¹chain /ˈʧeɪn/ noun, pl chains
1 a : a series of usually metal links or rings that are connected to each other in a line and used for supporting heavy things, for holding things together, for decoration, etc.

[count]
• The neighbor's dog is kept on a chain. [=is connected to a chain that keeps it from getting away]
• She wore a beautiful gold chain [=necklace] around her neck.
• the ship's anchor chain
• a bicycle chain

[noncount]
• We'll need 25 feet of chain for the pulley.
- see pictures on page C11 and at bicycle; see also choke chain, key chain
b [count] : a chain that is attached to the arms or legs of a prisoner - usually plural
• The prisoners were kept in chains while being transferred to the new jail.
- often used figuratively
• The contract would keep the employees in chains, unable to leave the company for at least five years.
- see also ball and chain
2 [count] : a series or group of things or people that are connected to each other in some way
• a chain of islands
• The world's longest mountain chain [=group of mountains that form a long line] is the Andes.
• The new book chronicles the chain of events leading up to the crime.
• Protesters formed a human chain [=they stood next to each other with their arms linked] around the ancient tree to prevent it from being cut down.
- see also daisy chain, food chain
3 [count] : a group of businesses (such as stores, restaurants, or hotels) that have the same name and basic appearance and sell the same products or services
• They own a chain of organic grocery stores.
• fast-food/clothing chains also; : the company that owns such a group of businesses
• The hotel chain recently opened a new hotel in Hong Kong.
- see also chain store
4 [count] Brit : a number of people who each want to buy a house but must first sell their current house before moving to the next one - usually singular
• Both houses are currently vacant so there is no chain to worry about.
pull the chain Brit : to flush a toilet
pull/yank someone's chain US informal : to deceive someone in a friendly or playful way
• I thought he really won the lottery but he was only pulling my chain. [=he was only playing a joke on me]