How to Use chain reaction in a Sentence

chain reaction

noun
  • Increased oil prices could trigger a chain reaction in the economy.
  • Will there be a chain reaction?
    — Mercury News Editorial, Mercury News, 15 Aug. 2025
  • This one was by chain reaction.
    — Kansas City Star, 22 Sep. 2025
  • That can create a chain reaction that spreads fast.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 26 Nov. 2025
  • Zilisch got loose in Turn 4 and caused a chain reaction.
    — Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 15 Feb. 2026
  • That belief set off a chain reaction.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 6 Feb. 2026
  • The struggle to raise cash has threatened to set off a chain reaction.
    — Jeanna Smialek, New York Times, 17 Mar. 2020
  • In the chain reaction of moves, Liggins was the first to fall.
    — Matt Velazquez, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 7 Jan. 2018
  • Challenge someone this year with a gift that gives a chain reaction for good.
    — Angela Belt, House Beautiful, 14 Dec. 2022
  • The chain reaction pushed prices higher at every link along the way.
    — New York Times, 9 Dec. 2021
  • But it’s gone too far with its easy kills and chain reaction explosions.
    — Paul Tassi, Forbes, 17 July 2023
  • The rains also set off a chain reaction up current.
    — Bill Kearney, Sun Sentinel, 29 Apr. 2026
  • One racer wiped out, causing a chain reaction that looked bad enough on the first glance.
    — Jack Holmes, Esquire, 31 Jan. 2017
  • The song started a chain reaction of dance both on stage and in the audience.
    — Rory Appleton, The Indianapolis Star, 11 July 2022
  • The events of No Way Home will then set off a chain reaction.
    — Jacob Siegal, BGR, 14 July 2021
  • What are the chances of a similar chain reaction being set off here?
    — Ron Grossman, chicagotribune.com, 4 Sep. 2017
  • Every chain reaction starts small and needs the help of at least one catalyst.
    — Omid Malekan, New York Times, 27 June 2018
  • Three vehicles were unable to stop and were struck in a chain reaction.
    — Deanese Williams-Harris, chicagotribune.com, 5 Feb. 2022
  • Those warmer waters can set off a chain reaction of climate effects around the world.
    — Leigh Morgan, al, 13 Apr. 2023
  • This can cause a chain reaction slowing of traffic in the lane involved.
    — Gary Richards, The Mercury News, 23 Aug. 2019
  • The heat causes the cell to vent flammable gas, which can ignite and catch fire, which can cause a chain reaction.
    — Elizabeth Weise, USA Today, 10 June 2025
  • Users start the chain reaction by flexing a metal disk inside the warmer.
    — Jon Hamilton, NPR, 16 Oct. 2025
  • The difference this time is the chain reaction.
    — Vitalii Savryha, Sourcing Journal, 21 Oct. 2025
  • Their surgeries were performed a day apart in March and that set off a chain reaction.
    — Mola Lenghi, CBS News, 2 July 2019
  • Cool water drawn up from the ocean depths due to the wind shift triggers a chain reaction of weather events.
    — Hayleigh Evans, The Arizona Republic, 16 Oct. 2024
  • Russell was struck by the first vehicle in the chain reaction.
    — Camila Pedrosa, The Arizona Republic, 26 Sep. 2022
  • Because of what happened with Bob, there's a chain reaction of events.
    — Dave Quinn, People.com, 13 Feb. 2025
  • One section failed, which caused a chain reaction that knocked down all seven stories.
    — Tom Ignudo, CBS News, 17 Apr. 2026
  • At the time, people didn't think a chain reaction was possible.
    — Ashraya Gupta, Scientific American, 14 Sep. 2023
  • Even a change of a few degrees would have been enough to trigger a chain reaction that caused the food chain to collapse.
    — Mike Wehner, BGR, 30 Mar. 2021

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'chain reaction.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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