branched chain

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noun Chemistry.

an open chain of atoms, usually carbon, with one or more side chains attached to it.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Compare straight-chain.

Origin of branched chain

First recorded in 1900–05

Words nearby branched chain

Bramwell, bran, Branagh, branch, branch cut, branched chain, branches of government, branchi-, branchia, branchial, branchial arch

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use branched chain in a sentence

You expect soldiers of all ranks to understand the need to respect the chain of command, regardless of personal feelings.
We Need Our Police to Be Better Than This|Nick Gillespie|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Say what you want about Abercrombie & Fitch (A&F), the chain has done something special.
Muslims & Jews Unite vs. Abercrombie & Fitch|Dean Obeidallah|December 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
After the scanning takes place, KSM is led down a long corridor flanked by chain-link fences.
9/11 Mastermind Is Afraid of the Ladies|Tim Mak|December 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Elderly women played Triple Double Diamond and Tiki Magic while they chain-smoked.
I Watched a Casino Kill Itself: The Awful Last Nights of Atlantic City’s Taj Mahal|Olivia Nuzzi|December 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST

So while mourning the closing of De Robertis, consider that we might someday mourn the bankruptcy of whatever chain replaces it.
De Robertis, a New York Great, Bids Farewell|Lizzie Crocker|December 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
She stood, in her young purity, at one end of the chain of years, and Mrs. Chepstow—did she really stand at the other?
Bella Donna|Robert Hichens
Sometimes the stems are quite bare; on other occasions they are partly branched; in any case the branches are short.
How to Know the Ferns|S. Leonard Bastin
Two many-branched candelabra, holding wax lights, brilliantly illuminate the game.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3)|Charles James Wills
Then he closed the spring with a snap, and she let him pass the chain over her hand once more.
Rosemary in Search of a Father|C. N. Williamson
From the ceiling, which was divided into compartments painted in dark red and blue, hung a heavy lamp by a chain of gilded silver.
Bella Donna|Robert Hichens

British Dictionary definitions for branched chain

branched chain

noun

chem an open chain of atoms with one or more side chains attached to itCompare straight chain

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