Chain Meaning
/ˈt͡ʃeɪn/Definition, CEFR level B1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
nounA series of interconnected rings or links usually made of metal.
nounA series of interconnected things.
Sentence Examples
The chain of crimes are thought to have been committed by the same man.
A chain of events led to the outbreak of the war.
She wore a heavy gold chain around her neck.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The rescue team used a heavy iron ____ to pull the car from the ditch.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The heavy iron ____ was used to keep the large gate closed at night.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English cheyne, chaine, from Old French chaine, chaene (“chain”), from Latin catēna (“chain”), from Proto-Indo-European *kat- (“to braid, twist; hut, shed”). Doublet of catena. Displaced native Middle English rakil and rakent (from Old English racente (“chain”)); see rackan.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
""But it's too far—must be a quarter of a mile—and I've a portmanteau to carry." […]
"Garn!" shouted the guard. "Taint ten chain. […]""
— 1938, Xavier Herbert, chapter X, in Capricornia, New York: D. Appleton-Century, published 1943, page 177:
"We first find an approximation of the chain partition, i.e. a small but not minimum size set of chains which cover all elements of the poset."
— 2003, Jeremy P. Spinrad, Efficient Graph Representations, American Mathematical Society, page 108:
"Driven down / To chains of darkness and the undying worm."
— 1667, John Milton, “Book VI”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC:
"And gainſt the General we will lift our ſwords
And either lanch his greedie thirſting throat,
Or take him priſoner, and his chaine ſhall ſerue
For Manackles, till he be ranſom’d home."
— c. 1587–1588 (date written), [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […], 2nd edition, part 1, London: […] [R. Robinson for] Richard Iones, […], published 1592, →OCLC; reprinted as Tamburlaine the Great (A Scolar Press Facsimile), Menston, Yorkshire; London: Scolar Press, 1973, →ISBN, Act I, scene ii:
"I miss when Game Of Thrones was wide open, but even then, the writers were chained to a narrative they didn’t yet know the ending of and feared straying too far from."
— 2017 August 13, Brandon Nowalk, “Oldtown offers one last game-changing secret as Game Of Thrones goes behind enemy lines (newbies)”, in The Onion AV Club:
Explore More B1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The rescue team used a heavy iron ____ to pull the car from the ditch.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The heavy iron ____ was used to keep the large gate closed at night.