chain of thought

plural chains of thought

1. figurativelyA connected sequence of ideas, reasoning, or mental associations that someone experiences in thinking; the logical or associative progression of someone’s reasoning.

   Near-synonym: thought process

   1 more example

   So reach into your chain of thought / Try to find something new / ('Cause what worked for you) / What worked so well for you before / For me just won't do

   1983, DeBarge, “Love Me in a Special Way”, in In a Special Way

   Synonyms: train of thought, line of thought, thought path, thread of thought, thought process

2. artificial intelligenceA sequence of intermediate reasoning steps generated by a model to break down and solve a problem before producing its final answer or response.