food chain

[ food cheyn ]

noun

1. Ecology. a series of organisms interrelated in their feeding habits, the smallest being fed upon by a larger one, which in turn feeds a still larger one, etc.
2. the chain from a food source to the ultimate consumer.
3. a hierarchy ranked by status, importance, influence, etc.:

   people who are high up on the political and media food chain.

food chain

noun

1. ecology a sequence of organisms in an ecosystem in which each species is the food of the next member of the chain
2. informal.
   the hierarchy in an organization or society

food chain

/ fo̅o̅d /

1. The sequence of the transfer of food energy from one organism to another in an ecological community. A food chain begins with a producer , usually a green plant or alga that creates its own food through photosynthesis. In the typical predatory food chain, producers are eaten by primary consumers (herbivores) which are eaten by secondary consumers (carnivores), some of which may in turn be eaten by tertiary consumers (the top carnivore in the chain).
2. ◆ Many species of animals in an ecological community feed on both plants and animals and thus play multiple roles in the chain. Parasites feed on living tissues, generally without killing their hosts, and may themselves be hosts to smaller parasites. In addition, organisms that die without being eaten are consumed by detritivores, some of which serve as prey for other consumers. The complex system of interrelated food chains in an environment is known as a food web.
3. See more at trophic level

food chain

1. The series of steps by which energy is obtained, used, and transformed by living things. For example: sunlight helps grain to grow, the grain feeds cattle, and humans eat the cattle.

Notes

Harmful chemicals can become concentrated as they move up the food chain.

Word History and Origins

Origin of food chain¹

First recorded in 1925–30

Example Sentences

Besides making Earth warm enough to be habitable, it gives plants the energy they need for photosynthesis, forming a crucial piece of the food chain.

From Singularity Hub 

Without them, their prey populations would soar, decreasing availability of plants and animals down the food chain.

From Washington Post

Many fast food chains have introduced plant-based options in recent years, but most of these have been partnerships with Impossible Foods or Beyond Meat.

From Washington Post

Over the past couple of years, basically every fast food chain has released a meatless burger.

From Eater

They can end up in the food chain, showing up in animals big and small.

From Science News For Students

I lived somewhere in the middle of the food chain—an involuntary humility, which remains the emotional posture behind reason.

From The Daily Beast

Now Burger King, the iconic fast-food chain long based in Miami, is joining the rush.

From The Daily Beast

The food chain is disrupted as seagrass and other plants die, in turn killing off animal populations that rely on them.

From The Daily Beast

Becoming the majority owner, therefore, requires being at absolute top of the food chain.

From The Daily Beast

There will even be a giant aquarium on site featuring Mediterranean food chain fish.

From The Daily Beast

The contest had been sponsored by—of all outfits—a big food chain, Trans-Columbia.

From Project Gutenberg