˜yÐÄvlog

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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
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged†2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

food chain

/ ´Ú´ÇÌ…´ÇÌ…»å /

  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. â—† 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.
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Notes

Harmful chemicals can become concentrated as they move up the food chain.
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˜yÐÄvlog History and Origins

Origin of food chain1

First recorded in 1925–30
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

The fast food chain suggested it still thought AI drive-throughs would be part of the future and it was looking for a new partner.

From

The metals also accumulate in the tissues of animals exposed to them, and then make their way up the food chain as those organisms are eaten by larger ones.

From

Fifteen million years ago, now-extinct species of dolphins, whales and large sea cows roamed the world’s oceans, topping the underwater food chain.

From

This could lead to a disruption in the food chain to some of our species and put them under pressure in the future.

From

And, like those popular fast food chains, many of them are franchises, meaning they’re individually run and managed.

From

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