file
1a 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.
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.
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.
Idioms about file
on file, arranged in order for convenient reference; in a file: The names are on file in the office.
Origin of file
1Other words for file
Other words from file
- file·a·ble, adjective
- filer, noun
- non·fil·er, noun
Words that may be confused with file
- file , phial
Other definitions for file (2 of 4)
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.
to reduce, smooth, or remove with or as if with a file.
Origin of file
2Other words from file
- file·a·ble, adjective
- filer, noun
Other definitions for file (3 of 4)
to defile; corrupt.
Origin of file
3Other definitions for filé (4 of 4)
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.
Origin of filé
4- Also called filé powder .
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use file in a sentence
But Bush has done exactly that, filing the papers for BH Global Aviation with the SEC right around Thanksgiving.
Be the Smarter Bush Brother, Jeb: Don’t Run! | Michael Tomasky | December 17, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe 1996 filing (which you can check out here) was, naturally, as silly and frivolous as the boycott push that came before it.
When the Religious Right Attacked ‘The Little Mermaid’ | Asawin Suebsaeng | November 20, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe pact covered two months, September and October, but “may be extended by the parties,” the filing states.
Exclusive: Did This Manhattan Firm Help Shield a Russian Fund From Sanctions? | Bill Conroy | November 10, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTA curse-filled half hour that saw my blood boil as my filing deadline ticked further into the past.
J.K. Rowling Pens the Greatest Horror Story Ever: Dolores Umbridge Was Real | Kevin Fallon | October 31, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTBut she had no way to know for sure until August, when a legal filing was inadvertently made public by a federal court.
Nor can other creditors through filing objections to a claim prevent a bona fide claimant from voting.
Putnam's Handy Law Book for the Layman | Albert Sidney BollesThe girls of the Junior class in modern history were filing out on Friday.
The Girls of Central High on the Stage | Gertrude W. MorrisonIndustrious junior clerks have put away a parcel of it in each one of their beautiful green filing cases.
Marguerite | Anatole FranceOffice equipment including floor cabinets and metal filing cabinets is made at Crozet.
Hallowed Heritage: The Life of Virginia | Dorothy M. TorpeyOne having to do with a received money order, and the other instance having to do with the filing of a telegram.
Warren Commission (10 of 26): Hearings Vol. X (of 15) | The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy
British Dictionary definitions for file (1 of 3)
/ (faɪl) /
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, etc: we have a file on every known thief
an orderly line or row
a line of people in marching formation, one behind another: Compare 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 topic: the environment file
on file recorded or catalogued for reference, as in a file
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 files: the ants filed down the hill
Origin of file
1Derived forms of file
- filer, noun
British Dictionary definitions for file (2 of 3)
/ (faɪl) /
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
(tr) to shape or smooth (a surface) with a file
Origin of file
2Derived forms of file
- filer, noun
British Dictionary definitions for file (3 of 3)
/ (faɪl) /
(tr) obsolete to pollute or defile
Origin of file
3Collins 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
[ 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.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Other Idioms and Phrases with file
see in single file; on file; rank and file.
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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