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• straight-chain
  straight-chain

  noun

  an open chain of atoms, usually carbon, with no side chains attached to it.
• straight chain
  straight chain

  noun

  Compare branched chain

straight-chain

American  

[streyt-cheyn] / ˈstreɪtˈtʃeɪn /

noun

Chemistry.

1. an open chain of atoms, usually carbon, with no side chains attached to it.

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straight chain British  

noun

1. Compare branched chain

   1. an open chain of atoms in a molecule with no attached side chains

   2. ( as modifier )

      a straight-chain hydrocarbon

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straight chain Scientific  

1. An arrangement of atoms of the same type that forms an unbranched open chain. Propane is a straight-chain compound with a chain of three carbon atoms.

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Etymology

Origin of straight-chain

First recorded in 1925–30

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

straight chain

“If you’re telling me there’s a straight chain of command back to El Chapo in Sinaloa — come on, that’s absurd,” the Mexican ambassador, Arturo Sarukhán, protested.

From New York Times ● Jun. 15, 2012

From Dusky Bay, according to Cook, to 44° 20' latitude, there is a straight chain of hills which rise directly from the sea, and are covered with forests.

From Celebrated Travels and Travellers Part 2. The Great Navigators of the Eighteenth Century by Benett, Léon