- 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.
- the chain from a food source to the ultimate consumer.
- a hierarchy ranked by status, importance, influence, etc.: people who are high up on the political and media food chain.
- a sequence of organisms in an ecosystem in which each species is the food of the next member of the chain
- the hierarchy in an organization or society
