verb (used with or without object), chain-smoked, chain-smoking.
- to smoke continually, as by lighting one cigarette, cigar, etc., from the preceding one.
verb
- to smoke (cigarettes, etc) continually, esp lighting one from the preceding one
One who smokes continually by lighting a new cigarette from the one being finished, as in Before they forbade smoking, bridge tournaments often attracted players who are chain smokers. [c. 1930]