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Chain vs Rope - What's the difference?

chain | rope |

In transitive terms the difference between chain and rope

is that chain is to measure a distance using a 66-foot long chain, as in land surveying while rope is to throw a rope around (something).

In intransitive terms the difference between chain and rope

is that chain is to link multiple items together while rope is to be formed into rope; to draw out or extend into a filament or thread.

chain

English

(wikipedia chain)

Noun

(en noun)
  • A series of interconnected rings or links usually made of metal.
    • He wore a gold chain around the neck .
  • A series of interconnected things.
    • a chain of mountains
    a chain of ideas, one leading to the next
    This led to an unfortunate chain of events .
  • A series of stores or businesses with the same brand name.
    • That chain of restaurants is expanding into our town .
  • (chemistry) A number of atoms in a series, which combine to form a molecule.
    • When examined, the molecular chain included oxygen and hydrogen .
  • (surveying) A series of interconnected links of known length, used as a measuring device.
  • (surveying) A long measuring tape.
  • A unit of length equal to 22 yards. The length of a Gunter's surveying chain. The length of a cricket pitch. Equal to 20.12 metres. Equal to 4 rods. Equal to 100 links.
  • (mathematics, order theory) A totally ordered set, especially a totally ordered subset of a poset.
  • (British) A sequence of linked house purchases, each of which is dependent on the preceding and succeeding purchase (said to be "broken" if a buyer or seller pulls out).
  • That which confines, fetters, or secures; a bond.
    • the chains of habit
  • * Milton
    • Driven down / To chains of darkness and the undying worm.
  • (nautical, in the plural) Iron links bolted to the side of a vessel to bold the dead-eyes connected with the shrouds; also, the channels.
  • (weaving) The warp threads of a web.
    • (Knight)

    Synonyms

    *

    Derived terms

    * Albert chain * ball and chain * bra chain * chaincase * chain drive * chain gang * chain gun * chain letter * chain lightning * chainlink * chainlink fence * chain mail, chainmail * chainman * chain of command * chain of custody * chain of events * chain of production * chain of thought * chain of title * chain pickerel * chainplate * chain pump * chain reaction * chainring * chain rule * chainsaw, chain saw * chain shot * chain-smoke * chain smoker * chainsmoking, chain-smoking * chain stitch * chain store * chain story * daisy chain, daisy-chain * food chain * green chain * Gunter's chain, Gunter's Chain * heterochain * hogchain * homochain * interchain * intrachain * keychain, key chain * Markov chain * megachain * mountain chain * off the chain * retail chain * side chain, sidechain * signifying chain * snow chain * subchain * supply chain * toolchain * waist chain

    Related terms

    * catena

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • To fasten something with a chain.
  • To link multiple items together.
  • To secure someone with fetters.
  • To obstruct the mouth of a river etc with a chain.
  • (computing) To relate data items with a chain of pointers.
  • (computing) To be chained to another data item.
  • To measure a distance using a 66-foot long chain, as in land surveying.
  • To load and automatically run (a program).
  • * 1996 , "Mr D Walsh", Running two programs from a batch file'' (on newsgroup ''comp.sys.acorn.misc )
    • How do you get one program to chain another? I want to run DrawWorks2 then !Draw but as soon as you run Drawworks2 it finishes the batch file and doesn't go on to the next instruction! Is there a way without loading one of these automatic loaders?
  • * 1998 , "Juan Flynn", BBC software transmitted on TV - how to load?'' (on newsgroup ''comp.sys.acorn.misc )
    • You can do LOAD "" or CHAIN "" to load or chain the next program if I remember correctly (it's been a loooong time since I've used a tape on an Acorn!)
  • * 2006 , "Richard Porter", SpamStamp double headers'' (on newsgroup ''comp.sys.acorn.apps )
    • Recent versions of AntiSpam no longer use the Config file but have a Settings file instead, so when I updated the Config file to chain SpamStamp it had no effect as it was a redundant file.

    References

    * * * OED 2nd edition 1989

    External links

    * (commonslite)

    Anagrams

    *

    rope

    English

    Alternative forms

    * (all obsolete)

    Noun

    (wikipedia rope)
  • (uncountable) Thick strings, yarn, monofilaments, metal wires, or strands of other cordage that are twisted together to form a stronger line.
    • Nylon rope is usually stronger than similar rope made of plant fibers.
  • (countable) An individual length of such material.
    • The swinging bridge is constructed of 40 logs and 30 ropes .
  • A cohesive strand of something.
  • * {{quote-book, 2003, (Dennis Lehane), Mystic River, page=138 citation
    • , passage=Jimmy began to scream and ropes of spit shot from his mouth.}}
  • (dated) A continuous stream.
  • * {{quote-book, 1852, John Bourne, 3= A Treatise on the Screw Propeller: With Various Suggestions of Improvement, page=38
    • , passage=The principle of any such device should be to pull on the vessel by a rope of water passing in at the bow and out at the stern. }}
  • (baseball) A hard line drive.
    • He hit a rope past third and into the corner.
  • (ceramics) A long thin segment of soft clay, either extruded or formed by hand.
  • (computer science) A data structure resembling a string, using a concatenation tree in which each leaf represents a character.
  • (Jainism) A unit of distance equivalent to the distance covered in six months by a god flying at ten million miles per second.(jump)
  • * {{quote-book, 2001, , editor=Nagendra Kr. Singh, chapter=Review of Metaphysical Teaching, Encyclopaedia of Jainism, citation
    • , passage=The central strip of the loka , the Middle World, represents its smallest area, being only one rope wide and one hundred thousand leagues high,
  • (jewelry) A necklace of at least 1 meter in length.
  • (nautical) Cordage of at least 1 inch in diameter, or a length of such cordage.
  • (archaic) A unit of length equal to 20 feet.
  • (slang) Flunitrazepam, also known as Rohypnol.
  • (in the plural) The small intestines.
    • the ropes of birds

    Synonyms

    * twine, line, cord; see also * (jump) rajju, infinitude

    Derived terms

    * jump rope * know the ropes * learn the ropes * money for old rope * on the ropes * rope ladder * Rope Monday * rope tow * rope-band * rope-dancer * rope-dancing * rope-end * ropefull * rope-house * rope-like * rope-maker * ropemanship * rope-over * ropery * rope-ripe * rope's end * rope-sick * rope-tide * ropewalk, rope-walk * ropework, rope-work * ropey, ropy * rope-yard * show one the ropes * teach one the ropes * skipping rope * wire rope

    Verb

    (rop)
  • To tie (something) with something.
    • The robber roped the victims.
  • To throw a rope around (something).
    • The cowboy roped the calf.
  • To be formed into rope; to draw out or extend into a filament or thread.
  • * Shakespeare
    • Let us not hang like roping icicles / Upon our houses' thatch.

    Synonyms

    * (to tie something) tie, bind, secure * (throw a rope around) lasso

    Derived terms

    * ropable, ropeable * rope-a-dope * roped * roper * rope together

    Anagrams

    * * ----