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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. a bicycle chain The prisoners were kept in chains (= with chains around their arms and legs, to prevent them from escaping). see key chain
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 food chain
- 3[countable] a group of 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 someone's freedom or ability to do something the chains of fear/misery Idioms
metal rings
a problem that prevents you from doing what you would like to do
one of the stages in a process or a line of argument Food production, processing and marketing are different links in the chain from farmer to consumer. Death is the last link in the chain.
the point at which a system or an organization is most likely to fail She went straight for the one weak link in the chain of his argument.
Check pronunciation: chain