Definition of Chain

1. Noun. A series of things depending on each other as if linked together. "A complicated concatenation of circumstances"

Exact synonyms: Concatenation
Specialized synonyms: Catena, Daisy Chain
Generic synonyms: Series
Derivative terms: Catenate, Catenulate

2. Verb. Connect or arrange into a chain by linking.
Generic synonyms: Arrange, Set Up
Specialized synonyms: Concatenate

3. Noun. (chemistry) a series of linked atoms (generally in an organic molecule).
Exact synonyms: Chemical Chain
Category relationships: Chemical Science, Chemistry
Specialized synonyms: Closed Chain, Ring, Long Chain, Long-chain Molecule, Open Chain
Generic synonyms: Building Block, Unit
Group relationships: Molecule
Derivative terms: Catenate, Catenulate

4. Verb. Fasten or secure with chains. "Chain the chairs together"
Generic synonyms: Fasten, Fix, Secure
Antonyms: Unchain

5. Noun. A series of (usually metal) rings or links fitted into one another to make a flexible ligament.

6. Noun. (business) a number of similar establishments (stores or restaurants or banks or hotels or theaters) under one ownership.

7. Noun. Anything that acts as a restraint.
Generic synonyms: Constraint, Restraint

8. Noun. A unit of length.
Generic synonyms: Linear Measure, Linear Unit
Terms within: Pace, Yard, Link
Specialized synonyms: Gunter's Chain, Engineer's Chain, Nautical Chain

9. Noun. British biochemist (born in Germany) who isolated and purified penicillin, which had been discovered in 1928 by Sir Alexander Fleming (1906-1979).
Exact synonyms: Ernst Boris Chain, Sir Ernst Boris Chain
Generic synonyms: Biochemist

10. Noun. A series of hills or mountains. "The plains lay just beyond the mountain range"
Exact synonyms: Chain Of Mountains, Mountain Chain, Mountain Range, Range, Range Of Mountains
Specialized synonyms: Adirondack Mountains, Adirondacks, Admiralty Range, Alaska Range, Alleghenies, Allegheny Mountains, Alps, The Alps, Altai Mountains, Altay Mountains, Andes, Apennines, Appalachian Mountains, Appalachians, Atlas Mountains, Australian Alps, Balkan Mountain Range, Balkan Mountains, Balkans, Berkshire Hills, Berkshires, Black Hills, Blue Ridge, Blue Ridge Mountains, Cantabrian Mountains, Carpathian Mountains, Carpathians, Cascade Mountains, Cascade Range, Cascades, Catskill Mountains, Catskills, Caucasus, Caucasus Mountains, Coast Mountains, Coast Range, Cumberland Mountains, Cumberland Plateau, Dolomite Alps, Eastern Highlands, Great Dividing Range, Great Smoky Mountains, Green Mountains, Guadalupe Mountains, Himalaya, Himalaya Mountains, Himalayas, Hindu Kush, Hindu Kush Mountains, Karakoram, Karakoram Range, Karakorum Range, Mustagh, Mustagh Range, Kuenlun, Kuenlun Mountains, Kunlan Shan, Kunlun, Kunlun Mountains, Mesabi Range, Mount Carmel, Nan Ling, Ozark Mountains, Ozark Plateau, Ozarks, Pamir Mountains, The Pamirs, Pyrenees, Rhodope Mountains, Rockies, Rocky Mountains, Sacramento Mountains, San Juan Mountains, Sayan Mountains, Selkirk Mountains, Sierra, Sierra Madre Occidental, Sierra Madre Oriental, High Sierra, Sierra Nevada, Sierra Nevada Mountains, Sierra Nevada, St. Elias Mountains, St. Elias Range, Taconic Mountains, Teton Range, Tien Shan, Tyan Shan, Transylvanian Alps, Tyrolean Alps, Ural Mountains, Urals
Generic synonyms: Formation, Geological Formation
Terms within: Massif, Mountain Pass, Notch, Pass

11. Noun. A linked or connected series of objects. "A chain of daisies"
Generic synonyms: Necklace

12. Noun. A necklace made by a stringing objects together. "A strand of pearls"
Exact synonyms: Strand, String
Generic synonyms: Necklace
Derivative terms: String

Definition of Chain

1. n. A series of links or rings, usually of metal, connected, or fitted into one another, used for various purposes, as of support, of restraint, of ornament, of the exertion and transmission of mechanical power, etc.

2. v. t. To fasten, bind, or connect with a chain; to fasten or bind securely, as with a chain; as, to chain a bulldog.

Definition of Chain

1. Noun. A series of interconnected rings or links usually made of metal. ¹

2. Noun. A series of interconnected things. ¹

3. Noun. A series of stores or businesses with the same brand name. ¹

4. Noun. A number of atoms in a series, which combine to form a molecule. ¹

5. Noun. (surveying) A series of interconnected links of known length, used as a measuring device. ¹

6. Noun. (surveying) A long measuring tape. ¹

7. Noun. A unit of length equal to 22 yards. The length of a Gunter's surveying chain. The length of a cricket pitch. Equal to 20.12 metres. Equal to 4 rods. Equal to 100 links. ¹

8. Noun. (British) A sequence of linked house purchases, each of which is dependent on the preceding and succeeding purchase (said to be "broken" if a buyer or seller pulls out). ¹

9. Verb. (transitive) To fasten something with a chain ¹

10. Verb. (intransitive) To link multiple items together ¹

11. Verb. (transitive) To secure someone with fetters ¹

12. Verb. (transitive) To obstruct the mouth of a river etc with a chain ¹

13. Verb. (computing) To relate data items with a chain of pointers. ¹

14. Verb. (computing) To be chained to another data item. ¹

15. Verb. (transitive) To measure a distance using a 66-foot long chain, as in land surveying. ¹

16. Verb. (transitive computing rare associated with (w Acorn Computers)) To load and automatically run (a program). ¹

¹ Source: wiktionary.com

Definition of Chain

1. to bind with a chain (a series of connected rings) [v -ED, -ING, -S]

Medical Definition of Chain

1. 1. In chemistry, a series of atoms held together by one or more covalent bonds. 2. In bacteriology, a linear arrangement of living cells that have divided in one plane and remain attached to each other. Origin: L. Catena (05 Mar 2000)

Lexicographical Neighbors of Chain

chafts
chagan
chagans
chagas cardiomyopathy
chagasic myocardiopathy
chagoma
chagreen
chagrin
chagrined
chagrining
chagrinned
chagrinning
chagrins
chai
chaidamuite
chain (current term)
chain-compensated spirometer
chain-smoke
chain-smoked
chain-smoker
chain-smokers
chain-smokes
chain-smoking
chain armor
chain armour
chain complex
chain complexes
chain drive
chain fern
chain ferry

Literary usage of Chain

Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:

1. The Principles and Practice of Surveying by Charles Blaney Breed, George Leonard Hosmer (1908)
"The chain should always be kept stretched out full length; ... Much time can be saved if the head.chainman will pace the chain.length and then place himself ..."

2. Science by American Association for the Advancement of Science (1905)
"Considerable divergence of opinion regarding the age of the chain has prevailed among previous writers, but it is probable that it received at least the ..."

3. Journal of the American Chemical Society by American Chemical Society (1879)
"Since we only consider the spatial interactions between groups separated by less than four CC bonds, St is independent of the main chain conformation, ..."

4. Le Morte Darthur: Sir Thomas Malory's Book of King Arthur and of His Noble by Thomas Malory, William Caxton (1903)
"And so Sir Percivale rode till it was after noon, and then he came upon a bridge of stone, and there he found a knight that was bound with a chain fast ..."

5. Notes and Queries by Martim de Albuquerque (1860)
"is a short paper upon the the curb chain (by .... Time curb-chain pattern is a well-known one, even in the present day. ..."

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