fix

American  

[fiks] / fɪks /

verb (used with object)

• fixes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• fixed,
  past participle,  past
• fixt,
  past participle,  past (Archaic)
• fixing
  present participle

1. to repair; mend.

   Synonyms:

   amend, correct

2. to put in order or in good condition; adjust or arrange.

   She fixed her hair in a bun.

3. to make fast, firm, or stable.

   Synonyms:

   stabilize, secure, fasten

4. to place definitely and more or less permanently.

   to fix a circus poster to a wall.

   Synonyms:

   stabilize, secure, fasten

5. to settle definitely; determine.

   to fix a price.

   Synonyms:

   define, establish

6. to direct (the eyes, the attention, etc.) steadily.

   His eyes were fixed on the distant ship.

7. to attract and hold (the eye, the attention, etc.).

8. to make set or rigid.

9. to put into permanent form.

10. to put or place (responsibility, blame, etc.) on a person.

11. to assign or refer to a definite place, time, etc.

12. to provide or supply with (something needed or wanted).

    How are you fixed for money?

13. Informal. to arrange or influence the outcome or action of, especially privately or dishonestly.

    to fix a jury; to fix a game.

14. to get (a meal); prepare (food).

    What time shall I fix supper?

15. Informal. to put in a condition or position to make no further trouble.

16. Informal. to get even with; get revenge upon.

    I'll fix him!

17. Informal. to castrate or spay (an animal, especially a pet).

18. Chemistry.

    1. to make stable in consistency or condition; reduce from fluidity or volatility to a more stable state.

    2. to convert atmospheric nitrogen into a useful compound, as a nitrate fertilizer.

19. Photography. to render (an image) permanent by removing light-sensitive silver halides.

20. Microscopy. to kill, make rigid, and preserve for microscopic study.

---

verb (used without object)

• fixes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• fixed,
  past participle,  past
• fixt,
  past participle,  past (Archaic)
• fixing
  present participle

1. to become fixed.

2. to become set; assume a rigid or solid form.

3. to become stable or permanent.

4. to settle down.

5. Slang. to inject oneself with a narcotic.

6. Chiefly Southern U.S. to prepare; plan (usually followed by an infinitive).

   I was just fixing to call you. We're fixing to go to Colorado this summer.

noun

• fixes
  plural

1. Informal. a position from which it is difficult to escape; predicament.

   Synonyms:

   quandary, plight, dilemma

2. Informal. a repair, adjustment, or solution, usually of an immediate nature.

   Can you think of a fix for the problem?

3. Navigation.

   1. a charted position of a vessel or aircraft, determined by two or more bearings taken on landmarks, heavenly bod-ies, etc.

   2. the determining of the position of a ship, plane, etc., by mathematical, electronic, or other means.

      The navigator took a fix on the sun and steered the ship due north.

4. a clear determination.

   Can you get a fix on what he really means?

5. Slang.

   1. an injection of heroin or other narcotic.

   2. the narcotic or amount of narcotic injected.

   3. a compulsively sought dose or infusion of something.

      to need one's daily fix of soap operas on TV.

6. Slang.

   1. an underhand or illegal arrangement, especially one secured through bribery or influence.

   2. a contest, situation, etc., whose outcome is prearranged dishonestly.

verb phrase

1. fix on / upon to decide on; determine.

   We won't be able to fix on a location for the banquet until we know the number of guests.

2. fix up

   1. to arrange for.

      to fix up a date.

   2. to provide with; furnish.

   3. to repair; renew.

   4. to smooth over; solve.

      They weren't able to fix up their differences.

idioms

1. fix one's wagon, to exact retribution for an offense; treat someone vengefully.

   I'll dock his pay and that will fix his wagon.

2. in a fix, pregnant.

fix British  

/ fɪks /

verb

1. (also intr) to make or become firm, stable, or secure

2. to attach or place permanently

   fix the mirror to the wall

3. (often foll by up) to settle definitely; decide

   let us fix a date

4. to hold or direct (eyes, attention, etc) steadily

   he fixed his gaze on the woman

5. to call to attention or rivet

6. to make rigid

   to fix one's jaw

7. to place or ascribe

   to fix the blame on someone

8. to mend or repair

9. informal to provide with

   how are you fixed for supplies?

10. informal to influence (a person, outcome of a contest, etc) unfairly, as by bribery

11. slang to take revenge on; get even with, esp by killing

12. informal to give (someone) his just deserts

    that'll fix him

13. informal to arrange or put in order

    to fix one's hair

14. informal to prepare

    to fix a meal

15. dialect to spay or castrate (an animal)

16. dialect to prepare oneself

    I'm fixing to go out

17. photog to treat (a film, plate, or paper) with fixer to make permanent the image rendered visible by developer

18. cytology to kill, preserve, and harden (tissue, cells, etc) for subsequent microscopic study

19. 1. to convert (atmospheric nitrogen) into nitrogen compounds, as in the manufacture of fertilizers or the action of bacteria in the soil

    2. to convert (carbon dioxide) into organic compounds, esp carbohydrates, as occurs in photosynthesis in plants and some microorganisms

20. to reduce (a substance) to a solid or condensed state or a less volatile state

21. slang (intr) to inject a drug

---

noun

1. informal a predicament; dilemma

2. the ascertaining of the navigational position, as of a ship, by radar, observation, etc

3. slang an intravenous injection of a drug, esp heroin

4. informal an act or instance of bribery

fix Scientific  

/ fĭks /

1. To convert inorganic carbon or nitrogen into stable, organic compounds that can be assimilated into organisms. Photosynthetic organisms such as green plants fix carbon in carbohydrates as food; certain bacteria fix nitrogen as ammonia that can be absorbed directly or through nitrification by plant roots.

2. See more at carbon fixation nitrogen fixation

3. To convert a substance, especially a gas, into solid or liquid form by chemical reactions.

4. To kill and preserve a tissue specimen rapidly to retain as nearly as possible the characteristics it had in the living body.

---

fix More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing fix

• get a fix
• get a fix on
• if it ain't broke don't fix it
• in a fix

---

Usage

Fix meaning “to repair” appears to have been used first in America, but it is long established and has been used in England since the early 19th century: The engineer quickly fixed the faulty valve. The verb use is fully standard in all varieties of speech and writing, and objections to it on the grounds of style merely reflect personal prejudice, not the practice of educated speakers and writers. The noun fix meaning “repair, adjustment” is informal. Fix ( to ) meaning “to prepare, plan (to)” is another Americanism: We're fixing to go to town. It once occurred in all the eastern coastal states, but it is now chiefly an informal spoken form in the South Midland and South.

Synonym Usage

Fix, establish imply making firm or permanent. To fix is to fasten in position securely or to make more or less permanent against change, especially something already existing: to fix a bayonet on a gun; fix a principle in one's mind. To establish is to make firm or permanent something (usually newly) originated, created, or ordained: to establish a business, a claim to property.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• fixability
  noun
• overfix
  verb
• refix
  verb (used with object)
• fixable
  adjective
• unfixable
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• fixes
  plural

Participles

• fixing
  present
• fixed
  past
• fixt
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• fix
  simple
• fixes
  simple
• have fixed
  perfect
• have fixt
  perfect
• has fixed
  perfect
• has fixt
  perfect
• am fixing
  progressive
• are fixing
  progressive
• is fixing
  progressive
• have been fixing
  perfect progressive
• has been fixing
  perfect progressive

Past

• fixed
  simple
• fixt
  simple
• had fixed
  perfect
• had fixt
  perfect
• was fixing
  progressive
• were fixing
  progressive
• had been fixing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will fix
  simple
• will have fixed
  perfect
• will have fixt
  perfect
• will be fixing
  progressive
• will have been fixing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of fix

First recorded in 1350–1400; (verb) Middle English fixen, from Middle French fixer or Medieval Latin fixāre, derivative of Latin fixus “fixed,” past participle of fīgere “to fasten”

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

fix fixes fixed fixt fixing

“The longer we wait to fix Social Security, the more expensive it will be for all of us,” he said.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026

And before they can fix their ace, the Pirates first have to figure out what’s wrong with him.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

"If a true friend like Huckabee has to bang on the table, then all of us need to stop and ask how it happened that we lost our way, and fix it immediately," he said.

From Barron's ● Aug. 13, 2026

They are negotiating settlement agreements with claimants, whose lawyers say the estate wants to secure a deal as soon as possible to fix a potential liability and understand the extent of the financial damage.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026

Jonah and I have spent the last few weekends here, helping Dad fix up a couple of units on the fourth floor.

From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam

For Leon Berkers, whose restaurant boat has been stuck in the mud for more than a month, adaptation has so far meant improvising fixes to keep "pots and pans from flying around."

From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026

Lurie has advocated for fixes to the ingredient rules and he said the new proposed rule was in effect “voluntary.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026

As part of “By the People,” Slate’s series exploring how Americans can reclaim the Constitution and the law, Alexis Romero outlined three possible fixes for an out-of-control Supreme Court.

From Slate ● Jul. 29, 2026

A Daera spokesperson said that while there are "no quick fixes", restoring and protecting the ecological health of water bodies "is possible by respecting the science and supporting the difficult decisions needed".

From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026

Mama brushes the hair out of my face and fixes the collar of my shirt like she did when I was a little girl.

From "Amina's Voice" by Hena Khan

It says an inquest, for which a date is yet to be fixed, is due to open into his death.

From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026

Totoki said the company still hasn’t fixed a date for PS6’s launch.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

Over many decades, homeowners benefited handsomely from leverage, because they were able to borrow cheaply for 30 years at low fixed interest rates.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026

Here’s how CEO Salim Ramji plans to bring Vanguard’s low-cost, high-return formula to cash savings, financial advice, and active fixed income.

From Barron's ● Aug. 13, 2026

If we were in a cartoon, our problems would be fixed in half an hour.

From "The Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman" by Gennifer Choldenko

This day is fixt for bringing the matter on in the house of Commons.

From The Life Of Thomas Paine, Vol. I. (of II) With A History of His Literary, Political and Religious Career in America France, and England; to which is added a Sketch of Paine by William Cobbett by Moncure Daniel Conway

When it stormed before my bread was baked, I fixt a few boards over the fire, and sat under them to watch my loaf, and passed some pleasant hours in that way.

From The Best of the World's Classics, Restricted to Prose, Vol. X (of X) - America - II, Index by Henry Cabot Lodge

From that lax shadow cast throughout the wide And endlesse world, that low’st projection Of universall life each thing’s deriv’d What e’re appeareth in corporeall fashion; For body’s but this spirit, fixt, grosse by conspissation.

From Democritus Platonissans by Henry More

That Τριχῇ διάστατον ἀντίτυπον is nothing but a fixt spirit, the conspissation or coagulation of the Cuspidall particles of the Cone, which are indeed the Centrall Tasis or inward essence of the sensible world.

From Democritus Platonissans by Henry More

On Umá's rounded arm the woollen band Was fixt securely by the nurse's hand.

From The Birth of the War-God A Poem by Kalidasa by Kalidasa

Driscoll, who is also a member of Patriotic Millionaires, an advocacy group of high-net-worth individuals focused on the country’s economy, said fixing Social Security is an obligation.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026

American drone operators lack experience fixing and arming drones under fire, said the person present at the exercise.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026

A woman has criticised Anglian Water for imposing a hosepipe ban while not fixing a water leak that she had reported "weeks ago".

From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026

Yet in a bizarre case of fixing something that does not need fixing, the program became the one CBS property executives chose to radically remake.

From Salon ● Aug. 8, 2026

Ekon didn’t answer, fixing his gaze on the front doors before them.

From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray

Related Words

• define
• establish
• limit
• resolve
• set
• settle
• solve
• specify
• work out