side chain

side chain noun: that part of a molecule attached to some core structure; a radical.

Noun

side chain (plural side chains)

That part of a molecule attached to some core structure; a radical.
Any of the variable parts of amino acids that extend from the peptide backbone in proteins; they are referred to as R-groups, which branch off the backbone at the alpha carbon (Cα).
Auxiliary audio input fed to a synthesizer etc. and used to selectively trigger an effect.
A separate blockchain attached to a parent blockchain (mainchain) to extend its functionalities.
- The Blockstream developers, meanwhile, were accused of working for the interests of their company, Blockstream, rather than the good of Bitcoin as a whole. Their company, after all, proposed breaking many smaller transactions off onto so called sidechains that would occasionally link back up with...2015, Nathaniel Popper, “Epilogue”, in Digital Gold, 1st edition, New York: Harper, →ISBN, →OCLC
- A sidechain does not have a native token but rather creates a two-way peg or a 1:1 peg between bitcoin (tokens) and the “pegged bitcoin” on the sidechain.2021, H. Kent Baker, Ehsan Nikbakht, Sean Stein Smith, The Emerald Handbook of Blockchain for Business, Emerald Group Publishing, →ISBN, page 179
Synonyms:

childchain
On some railways, a chain fitted on both sides of a centre coupler or buffer at each end of a rail vehicle, which has a hook for connection to a corresponding chain on the next vehicle in a train.
- When the screw coupling replaced the old chain couplings on passenger stock, the latter were retained and still coupled up to prevent severance of a train in the event of a screw coupling breaking. The contingency is so remote, however, that the side chains have been abolished.1946 May and June, “The Why and The Wherefore: Miscellanea”, in Railway Magazine, pages 197–198

Verb

side chain (third-person singular simple present side chains, present participle side chaining, simple past and past participle side chained)

To use auxiliary audio input in that manner.

side chain meaning in Tamil

side chain in Tamil

பக்கத் தொடர்

Synonyms of side chain

childchain

Forms of side chain

Noun
plural	side chains
alternative form	sidechain
alternative form	side-chain
Verb
third-person singular present	side chains
present participle	side chaining
past participle	side chained
past	side chained

Questions about side chain

What does side chain mean?: Side chain means that part of a molecule attached to some core structure; a radical.
What is side chain in Tamil?: Side chain in Tamil is பக்கத் தொடர். See Side chain meaning in Tamil.
What part of speech is side chain?: Side chain can be a noun or a verb.
What is the plural of side chain?: The plural of side chain is side chains.

Words near side chain in the dictionary

Adapted from Wiktionary: side chain (page history and authors); side chain (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Cite this entry: “side chain.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/side_chain. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.