blockchain

American  

[blok-cheyn] / ˈblɒkˌtʃeɪn /

noun

Computers.

1. a structure used for a distributed or shared database consisting of discrete blocks of data, with each new block secured and connected to earlier ones by cryptography: used to create digital ledgers for cryptocurrency systems, among other things.

   Several schools now offer courses in the technology behind blockchain.

   Under the scheme, farmers would add information about their produce to a blockchain database that could quickly pinpoint contamination.

2. a distributed or shared database created and populated using a structure consisting of discrete blocks of data, with each new block secured and connected to earlier ones by cryptography.

   Once the transaction gets verified, it's recorded in the blockchain.

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Etymology

Origin of blockchain

First recorded in 2010–15; block ( def. ) + chain ( def. )

Example Sentences

The anonymous account had a blockchain identifier of letters and numbers.

From BBC

The trader goes by a default screen name made up of a blockchain address, a long string of numbers and letters.

From The Wall Street Journal

Cryptocurrencies and blockchain products have brought efficiencies and advances to payments systems, but it would be a mistake to tout such benefits while glossing over crypto’s dark side.

From The Wall Street Journal

The landmark measure has sparked a race on Wall Street to tokenize, or transform, real-world assets ranging from stocks to office buildings into digital tokens on the blockchain.

From The Wall Street Journal

And every four years, miners confront another halving, an adjustment to the bitcoin blockchain that cuts in half the number of bitcoins that can be unlocked.

From The Wall Street Journal