file

[ fahyl ]

/ faɪl /

noun

a folder, cabinet, or other container in which papers, letters, etc., are arranged in convenient order for storage or reference.

a collection of papers, records, etc., arranged in convenient order: to make a file for a new account.

Computers. a collection of related data or program records stored on some input/output or auxiliary storage medium: This program's main purpose is to update the customer master file.

a line of persons or things arranged one behind another (distinguished from rank¹ def. 10).

Military.

a person in front of or behind another in a military formation.
one step on a promotion list.

one of the vertical lines of squares on a chessboard.

a list or roll.

a string or wire on which papers are strung for preservation and reference.

verb (used with object), filed, fil·ing.

to place in a file.

to arrange (papers, records, etc.) in convenient order for storage or reference.

Journalism.

to arrange (copy) in the proper order for transmittal by wire.
to transmit (copy), as by wire or telephone: He filed copy from Madrid all through the war.

verb (used without object), filed, fil·ing.

to march in a file or line, one after another, as soldiers: The parade filed past endlessly.

to make application: to file for a civil-service job.

QUIZZES

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Even if you can't be a professional chef, you can at least talk like one with this vocabulary quiz.

Question 1 of 9

You may have read the word "simmer" in a recipe or two, but what does it really mean?

To cook in water that begins cold and then reaches a boil.

To stew in a sauce for a long time.

To cook in water, just below boiling temperature.

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Idioms for file

on file, arranged in order for convenient reference; in a file: The names are on file in the office.

Origin of file

First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English verb filen, from Middle French filer “to string documents on a thread or wire,” Old French: “to wind or spin thread,” from Vulgar Latin fīlāre “to wind or spin thread,” from the Latin noun fīlum “a string, thread”; the English noun is derived from the verb

SYNONYMS FOR file

10 classify, label, catalog, index, list, categorize.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR file

OTHER WORDS FROM file

file·a·ble, adjectivefiler, nounnon·fil·er, noun

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH file

file , phial

Words nearby file

Filatov flap, filature, filbert, filch, Filchner Ice Shelf, file, file band, file card, file clerk, file extension, filefish

Definition for file (2 of 4)

file²

[ fahyl ]

/ faɪl /

noun

a long, narrow tool of steel or other metal having a series of ridges or points on its surfaces for reducing or smoothing surfaces of metal, wood, etc.

a small, similar tool for trimming and cleaning fingernails; nail file.

British Slang. a cunning, shrewd, or artful person.

verb (used with object), filed, fil·ing.

to reduce, smooth, or remove with or as if with a file.

Origin of file

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English fīl, fēol; cognate with German Feile; akin to Slavic (Polish) piła “saw”

OTHER WORDS FROM file

file·a·ble, adjectivefiler, noun

Definition for file (3 of 4)

file³

[ fahyl ]

/ faɪl /

verb (used with object), filed, fil·ing.Archaic.

to defile; corrupt.

Origin of file

First recorded before 1000; Middle English, Old English fȳlan “to befoul, defile,” derivative of fūl foul

Definition for file (4 of 4)

filé

[ fi-ley, fee-ley ]

/ fɪˈleɪ, ˈfi leɪ /

noun New Orleans Cooking.

a powder made from the ground leaves of the sassafras tree, used as a thickener and to impart a pungent taste to soups, gumbos, and other dishes.

Also called filé powder .

Origin of filé

1800–10, Americanism;<Louisiana French; literally, twisted, ropy, stringy (perhaps originally applied to dishes thickened with the powder), past participle of French filer;see file¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for file

Prosecutors said the ransomware used an increasingly popular new tactic that not only encrypts a victim’s files but also exfiltrates the data to the hacker’s servers.
Elon Musk confirms Tesla was target of foiled ransomware attack|Kirsten Korosec|August 28, 2020|TechCrunch
Rossi moved out in 2016 and filed for divorce the following year.
The Mystery House: How a Suspicious Multimillion Dollar Real Estate Deal Is Connected to California’s Deadliest Fire|by Scott Morris, Bay City News Foundation|August 26, 2020|ProPublica
She told the judge the employee who was previously responsible for filing the court cases was no longer with the authority.
She Was Sued Over Rent She Didn’t Owe. It Took Seven Court Dates to Prove She Was Right.|by Danielle Ohl, Capital Gazette, and Talia Buford and Beena Raghavendran, ProPublica|August 25, 2020|ProPublica
On Sunday, Microsoft’s general manager for gaming developer experience, Kevin Gammill, filed a declaration of support for Epic’s motion for a temporary restraining order against Apple.
Publishers could soon have more leverage to force Apple to relax its ‘my way or the highway’ approach|Lara O'Reilly|August 25, 2020|Digiday

The San Francisco-based startup filed paperwork for the listing Monday.
Asana files for direct listing amid slew of software IPOs|Verne Kopytoff|August 24, 2020|Fortune
Did he go to the authorities to file a report against the Guerreros Unidos drug cartel?
Mexico’s Priests Are Marked for Murder|Jason McGahan|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
With 3D printing you can continue to use the file and update.
3-D Printing Is Changing the Future of Prosthetics|Lucy Vernasco|December 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
She also told TMZ that she plans to file a civil suit against Cosby.
Bill Cosby’s Long List of Accusers (So Far): 18 Alleged Sexual Assault Victims Between 1965-2004|Marlow Stern|November 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Now, the foundation has presidents, boards, and accountants, and their job is to file.
Wyclef Jean Talks Lauryn Hill, the Yele Haiti Controversy, and Chris Christie|Marlow Stern|November 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Crooks can use it to apply for credit, file fake claims with insurers, or buy drugs and medical equipment that can be resold.
How Your Pacemaker Will Get Hacked|Kaiser Health News|November 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And so there is no way that I can tell for sure that he was or he wasn't, because we never did maintain a file in this direction.
Warren Commission (10 of 26): Hearings Vol. X (of 15)|The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy
That this has really taken place may be proved by the use of a file.
The Preservation of Antiquities|Friedrich Rathgen
On the file of cabs, just perceptible through the foliage, the cabmen lolled in listless attitudes.
The Morals of Marcus Ordeyne|William J. Locke
The rank and file of American readers have their tastes formed and supplied by the Sunday newspapers and the cheap periodicals.
The Unpopular Review Vol. I|Various
The inspection is from right to left in front, and from left to right in rear, of each rank and of the line of file closers.
Infantry Drill Regulations, United States Army, 1911|United States War Department

British Dictionary definitions for file (1 of 3)

file¹

/ (faɪl) /

noun

a folder, box, etc, used to keep documents or other items in order

the documents, etc, kept in this way

documents or information about a specific subject, person, etcwe have a file on every known thief

an orderly line or row

a line of people in marching formation, one behind anotherCompare rank 1 (def. 6)

any of the eight vertical rows of squares on a chessboard

computing a named collection of information, in the form of text, programs, graphics, etc, held on a permanent storage device such as a magnetic disk

obsolete a list or catalogue

Canadian a group of problems or responsibilities, esp in government, associated with a particular topicthe environment file

on file recorded or catalogued for reference, as in a file

verb

to place (a document, letter, etc) in a file

(tr) to put on record, esp to place (a legal document) on public or official record; register

(tr) to bring (a suit, esp a divorce suit) in a court of law

(tr) to submit (copy) to a newspaper or news agency

(intr) to march or walk in a file or filesthe ants filed down the hill

Derived forms of file

filer, noun

Word Origin for file

C16 (in the sense: string on which documents are hung): from Old French filer, from Medieval Latin fīlāre; see filament

British Dictionary definitions for file (2 of 3)

file²

/ (faɪl) /

noun

a hand tool consisting essentially of a steel blade with small cutting teeth on some or all of its faces. It is used for shaping or smoothing metal, wood, etc

rare, British slang a cunning or deceitful person

verb

(tr) to shape or smooth (a surface) with a file

Derived forms of file

filer, noun

Word Origin for file

Old English fīl; related to Old Saxon fīla, Old High German fīhala file, Greek pikros bitter, sharp

British Dictionary definitions for file (3 of 3)

file³

/ (faɪl) /

verb

(tr) obsolete to pollute or defile

Word Origin for file

Old English fӯlan; related to Middle Low German vülen; see defile 1, filth, foul

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for file

file

[ fīl ]

A collection of related data or program records stored as a unit with a single name. Files are the basic units that a computer works with in storing and retrieving data.

Idioms and Phrases with file

file

see in single file; on file; rank and file.

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file

noun

verb (used with object), filed, fil·ing.

verb (used without object), filed, fil·ing.

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Idioms for file

Origin of file

SYNONYMS FOR file

OTHER WORDS FROM file

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH file

Words nearby file

Definition for file (2 of 4)

noun

verb (used with object), filed, fil·ing.

Origin of file

OTHER WORDS FROM file

Definition for file (3 of 4)

verb (used with object), filed, fil·ing.Archaic.

Origin of file

Definition for file (4 of 4)

noun New Orleans Cooking.

Origin of filé

Words related to file

Example sentences from the Web for file

British Dictionary definitions for file (1 of 3)

noun

verb

Derived forms of file

Word Origin for file

British Dictionary definitions for file (2 of 3)

noun

verb

Derived forms of file

Word Origin for file

British Dictionary definitions for file (3 of 3)

verb

Word Origin for file

Scientific definitions for file

Idioms and Phrases with file