Dictionary entry details
• CHAIN (noun)
Meaning:
A series of things depending on each other as if linked together
Classified under:
Nouns denoting groupings of people or objects
Synonyms:
chain; concatenation
Context examples:
the chain of command / a complicated concatenation of circumstances
Hypernyms ("chain" is a kind of...):
series (similar things placed in order or happening one after another)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "chain"):
catena (a chain of connected ideas or passages or objects so arranged that each member is closely related to the preceding and following members (especially a series of patristic comments elucidating Christian dogma))
daisy chain ((figurative) a series of associated things or people or experiences)
Meaning:
(chemistry) a series of linked atoms (generally in an organic molecule)
Classified under:
Nouns denoting natural objects (not man-made)
Synonyms:
chemical chain; chain
Hypernyms ("chain" is a kind of...):
building block; unit (a single undivided natural thing occurring in the composition of something else)
Domain category:
chemical science; chemistry (the science of matter; the branch of the natural sciences dealing with the composition of substances and their properties and reactions)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "chain"):
open chain (a chain of atoms in a molecule whose ends are not joined to form a ring)
long chain; long-chain molecule ((chemistry) a relatively long chain of atoms in a molecule)
closed chain; ring ((chemistry) a chain of atoms in a molecule that forms a closed loop)
Holonyms ("chain" is a part of...):
molecule ((physics and chemistry) the simplest structural unit of an element or compound)
Meaning:
A series of (usually metal) rings or links fitted into one another to make a flexible ligament
Classified under:
Nouns denoting man-made objects
Hypernyms ("chain" is a kind of...):
ligament (any connection or unifying bond)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "chain"):
anchor chain (the chain that attaches an anchor to a vessel)
snow chain; tire chain (chain attached to wheels to increase traction on ice or snow)
pull chain (a chain (usually with a handle at the end) that is pulled in order to operate some mechanism (e.g. to flush a toilet))
paper chain (a chain made of loops of colored paper; used to decorate a room)
fob; watch chain; watch guard (short chain or ribbon attaching a pocket watch to a man's vest)
chatelaine (a chain formerly worn at the waist by women; for carrying a purse or bunch of keys etc.)
bicycle chain (a chain that transmits the power from the pedals to the rear wheel of a bicycle)
Holonyms ("chain" is a part of...):
chain tongs (a pipe wrench used for turning large pipes; an adjustable chain circles the pipe with its ends connected to the head whose teeth engage the pipe)
chain printer (an impact printer that carries the type slugs by links of a revolving chain)
bicycle; bike; cycle; wheel (a wheeled vehicle that has two wheels and is moved by foot pedals)
Meaning:
A number of similar establishments (stores or restaurants or banks or hotels or theaters) under one ownership
Classified under:
Nouns denoting groupings of people or objects
Hypernyms ("chain" is a kind of...):
business; business concern; business organisation; business organization; concern (a commercial or industrial enterprise and the people who constitute it)
Meronyms (members of "chain"):
chain store (one of a chain of retail stores under the same management and selling the same merchandise)
Domain category:
dramatic art; dramatics; dramaturgy; theater; theatre (the art of writing and producing plays)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "chain"):
retail chain (a chain of retail stores)
restaurant chain (a chain of restaurants)
discount chain (a chain of discount stores)
apparel chain (a chain of clothing stores)
Meaning:
Anything that acts as a restraint
Classified under:
Nouns denoting man-made objects
Hypernyms ("chain" is a kind of...):
constraint; restraint (a device that retards something's motion)
Meaning:
A unit of length
Classified under:
Nouns denoting quantities and units of measure
Hypernyms ("chain" is a kind of...):
linear unit (a unit of measurement of length)
Meronyms (parts of "chain"):
pace; yard (a unit of length equal to 3 feet; defined as 91.44 centimeters; originally taken to be the average length of a stride)
link (a unit of length equal to 1/100 of a chain)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "chain"):
Gunter's chain (a unit of length (22 yards))
engineer's chain (a unit of length (100 ft))
nautical chain (a nautical unit of length (15 ft))
Meaning:
British biochemist (born in Germany) who isolated and purified penicillin, which had been discovered in 1928 by Sir Alexander Fleming (1906-1979)
Classified under:
Nouns denoting people
Synonyms:
Ernst Boris Chain; Sir Ernst Boris Chain; Chain
Instance hypernyms:
biochemist (someone with special training in biochemistry)
Meaning:
A series of hills or mountains
Classified under:
Nouns denoting natural objects (not man-made)
Synonyms:
range of mountains; mountain range; mountain chain; chain of mountains; range; chain
Context examples:
the valley was between two ranges of hills / the plains lay just beyond the mountain range
Hypernyms ("chain" is a kind of...):
formation; geological formation ((geology) the geological features of the earth)
Meronyms (parts of "chain"):
massif (a block of the earth's crust bounded by faults and shifted to form peaks of a mountain range)
mountain pass; notch; pass (the location in a range of mountains of a geological formation that is lower than the surrounding peaks)
Instance hyponyms:
Rockies; Rocky Mountains (the chief mountain range of western North America; extends from British Columbia to northern New Mexico; forms the continental divide)
Rhodope Mountains (a mountain range in the Balkan peninsula in southeastern Europe; extends along the border between Greece and Bulgaria)
Pyrenees (a chain of mountains between France and Spain)
Pamir Mountains; the Pamirs (a mountain range in central Asia that is centered in Tajikistan but extends into Kyrgyzstan and Afghanistan and Pakistan and western China)
Ozark Mountains; Ozark Plateau; Ozarks (an area of low mountains in northwestern Arkansas and southeastern Missouri and northeastern Oklahoma)
Nan Ling (a mountain range in southeastern China running generally east to west)
Mount Carmel (a mountain range in northwestern Israel near the Mediterranean coast)
Mesabi Range (a range of hills in northeastern Minnesota where rich iron ore deposits were discovered in 1887)
Kuenlun; Kuenlun Mountains; Kunlan Shan; Kunlun; Kunlun Mountains (a mountain range in western China that extends eastward from the Indian border for 1000 miles)
Karakoram; Karakoram Range; Karakorum Range; Mustagh; Mustagh Range (a mountain range in northern Kashmir; an extension of the Hindu Kush; contains the 2nd highest peak)
Hindu Kush; Hindu Kush Mountains (a mountain range extending west of the Himalayas)
Himalaya; Himalaya Mountains; Himalayas (a mountain range extending 1500 miles on the border between India and Tibet; this range contains the world's highest mountain)
Sacramento Mountains (mountain range in New Mexico east of the Rio Grande)
San Juan Mountains (a mountain range in southwestern Colorado that is part of the Rocky Mountains)
Tien Shan; Tyan Shan (a major mountain range of central Asia; extends 1,500 miles)
Teton Range (a mountain range in northwest Wyoming; contains the Grand Teton)
Taconic Mountains (a range of the Appalachian Mountains long the eastern border of New York with Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Vermont)
St. Elias Mountains; St. Elias Range (a range of mountains between Alaska and the Yukon territory)
Sierra Nevada (a mountain range in southern Spain along the Mediterranean coast east of Granada)
High Sierra; Sierra Nevada; Sierra Nevada Mountains (a mountain range in eastern California; contains Mount Whitney)
Sierra Madre Oriental (a mountain range in northeastern Mexico the runs parallel to the coastline of the Gulf of Mexico)
Sierra Madre Occidental (a mountain range in northwestern Mexico that runs south from Arizona parallel to the Pacific coastline)
sierra (a range of mountains (usually with jagged peaks and irregular outline))
Selkirk Mountains (a range of the Rocky Mountains in southeastern British Columbia)
Sayan Mountains (a range of mountains in southern Siberia west of Lake Baikal; contain important mineral deposits)
Ural Mountains; Urals (a mountain range in western Russia extending from the arctic to the Caspian Sea; forms part of the traditional boundary between Europe and Asia)
Guadalupe Mountains (a mountain range in southern New Mexico and western Texas; the southern extension of the Sacramento Mountains)
Green Mountains (a range of the Appalachian Mountains that extends from south to north through Vermont)
Australian Alps (a range of mountains in Australia that forms the southern end of the Great Dividing Range)
Atlas Mountains (a mountain range in northern Africa between the Mediterranean and the Sahara Desert; extends from southwestern Morocco to northern Tunisia)
Appalachian Mountains; Appalachians (a mountain range in the eastern United States extending from Quebec to the Gulf of Mexico; a historic barrier to early westward expansion of the United States)
Apennines (a mountain range extending the length of the Italian peninsula)
Andes (a mountain range in South America running 5000 miles along the Pacific coast)
Altai Mountains; Altay Mountains (a mountain range in central Asia that extends a thousand miles from Kazakhstan eastward into western Mongolia and northern China)
Alps; the Alps (a large mountain system in south-central Europe; scenic beauty and winter sports make them a popular tourist attraction)
Alleghenies; Allegheny Mountains (the western part of the Appalachian Mountains; extending from northern Pennsylvania to southwestern Virginia)
Alaska Range (a mountain range in south central Alaska; contains Mount McKinley)
Admiralty Range (mountains in Antarctica north of Victoria Land)
Adirondack Mountains; Adirondacks (a mountain range in northeastern New York State; a popular resort area)
Balkan Mountain Range; Balkan Mountains; Balkans (the major mountain range of Bulgaria and the Balkan Peninsula)
Berkshire Hills; Berkshires (a low mountain range in western Massachusetts; a resort area)
Black Hills (mountains in southwestern South Dakota and northeastern Wyoming; sacred to the Sioux (whites settling in the Black Hills led to the Battle of Little Bighorn); site of Mount Rushmore)
Great Smoky Mountains (part of the Appalachians between North Carolina and Tennessee)
Eastern Highlands; Great Dividing Range (a mountain range running along the eastern coast of Australia)
Dolomite Alps (an eastern range of the Alps in northeastern Italy famous for their dolomitic limestone)
Cumberland Mountains; Cumberland Plateau (the southwestern part of the Appalachians)
Coast Mountains; Coast Range (a string of mountain ranges along the Pacific coast of North America from southeastern Alaska to Lower California)
Caucasus; Caucasus Mountains (the mountain range in Caucasia between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea that forms part of the traditional border between Europe and Asia)
Catskill Mountains; Catskills (a range of the Appalachians west of the Hudson in southeastern New York; includes many popular resort areas)
Cascade Mountains; Cascade Range; Cascades (a mountain range in the northwestern United States extending through Washington and Oregon and northern California; a part of the Coast Range)
Carpathian Mountains; Carpathians (a mountain range in central Europe that extends from Slovakia and southern Poland southeastward through western Ukraine to northeastern Romania; a popular resort area)
Cantabrian Mountains (a range of mountains in northern Spain along the coast of the Bay of Biscay)
Blue Ridge; Blue Ridge Mountains (a range of the Appalachians extending from southern Pennsylvania to northern Georgia)
Meaning:
A necklace made by a stringing objects together
Classified under:
Nouns denoting man-made objects
Synonyms:
strand; chain; string
Context examples:
a string of beads / a strand of pearls
Hypernyms ("chain" is a kind of...):
necklace (jewelry consisting of a cord or chain (often bearing gems) worn about the neck as an ornament (especially by women))
• CHAIN (verb)
Meaning:
Connect or arrange into a chain by linking
Classified under:
Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging
Hypernyms (to "chain" is one way to...):
arrange; set up (put into a proper or systematic order)
Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "chain"):
concatenate (arranged into chained list)
Sentence frame:
Somebody ----s something
Meaning:
Fasten or secure with chains
Classified under:
Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging
Context example:
Chain the chairs together
Hypernyms (to "chain" is one way to...):
fasten; fix; secure (cause to be firmly attached)
Sentence frames:
Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody
Somebody ----s something PP
Antonym:
unchain (remove the chains from)
