missing link

[mis-ing lingk] / ˈmɪs ɪŋ ˈlɪŋk /

NOUN

lost connection

Synonyms

WEAK

broken thread omission prehuman protohuman

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The Zambian segment of the Lobito Corridor -- often described as the missing link -- is not on LAR's near-term agenda, he added, citing the scale and cost of rehabilitating the rail infrastructure.

From Barron's • May 7, 2026

Dulles came to believe that religion, specifically an ecumenical Protestantism aiming to promote cooperation among different sects, was the missing link that could provide a moral architecture for the global system.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 15, 2026

"This was the missing link that explains how a normal immune response can, in very rare cases, become harmful."

From Science Daily • Apr. 10, 2026

“It’s kind of a missing link in the system, through a fairly densely populated part of the city,” Elkind said of the proposed K Line extension.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 24, 2026

That thought gives me the missing link in the chain of thought I was trying to find.

From "Insurgent" by Veronica Roth