fill

[ fil ]

/ fɪl /

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See synonyms for: fill / filled / filling on Thesaurus.com

Definition of fill

verb (used with object)

to make full; put as much as can be held into: to fill a jar with water.

to occupy to the full capacity: Water filled the basin. The crowd filled the hall.

to supply to an extreme degree or plentifully: to fill a house with furniture; to fill the heart with joy.

to satisfy fully the hunger of; satiate: The roast beef filled the diners.

to put into a receptacle: to fill sand into a pail.

to be plentiful throughout: Fish filled the rivers.

to extend throughout; pervade completely: The odor filled the room.

to furnish with an occupant: The landlord filled the vacancy yesterday.

to provide (an office or opening) with an incumbent: The company is eager to fill the controllership.

to occupy and perform the duties of (a vacancy, position, post, etc.).

to supply the requirements or contents of (an order), as for goods; execute.

to supply (a blank space) with written matter, decorative work, etc.

to meet satisfactorily, as requirements: This book fills a great need.

to make up, compound, or otherwise provide the contents of (a medical prescription).

to stop up or close (a cavity, hole, etc.): to fill a tooth.

Cooking. to insert a filling into: to fill cupcakes with custard.

Nautical.

to distend (a sail) by pressure of the wind so as to impart headway to a vessel.
to brace (a yard) so that the sail will catch the wind on its after side.

to adulterate: to fill soaps with water.

Civil Engineering, Building Trades. to build up the level of (an area) with earth, stones, etc.

verb (used without object)

to become full: The hall filled rapidly. Our eyes filled with tears.

to increase in atmospheric pressure: a filling cyclone.

to become distended, as sails with the wind.

noun

a full supply; enough to satisfy want or desire: to eat one's fill.

an amount of something sufficient for filling; charge.

Civil Engineering, Building Trades. a quantity of earth, stones, etc., for building up the level of an area of ground: These houses were built on fill.Compare backfill (def. 1).

the feed and water in the digestive tract of a livestock animal, especially that consumed before marketing.

Verb Phrases

fill away, Nautical.

to fall off the wind and proceed on a board.
to brace the yards, so that sails that have been aback will stand full.

fill in,

to supply missing or desired information: Fill in the facts of your business experience.
to complete by adding detail, as a design or drawing: to fill in a sketch with shadow.
to substitute for: to fill in for a colleague who is ill.
to fill with some material: to fill in a crack with putty.
Informal. to supply (someone) with information: Please fill me in on the morning news.

fill out,

to complete (a document, list, etc.) by supplying missing or desired information.
to become larger, fuller, or rounder, as the figure: The children have begun to fill out since I saw them last.

fill up,

to fill completely: to fill up a glass; to fill up a fuel tank.
to become completely filled: The riverbed filled up as a result of the steady rains.

OTHER WORDS FOR fill

2 crowd, pac, jam, cram.

13 satisfy, answer, fulfill.

See synonyms for fill on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

SHALL WE PLAY A "SHALL" VS. "SHOULD" CHALLENGE?

Should you take this quiz on “shall” versus “should”? It should prove to be a quick challenge!

Question 1 of 6

Which form is used to state an obligation or duty someone has?

shall

should

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Idioms about fill

fill and stand on, Nautical. (of a sailing vessel) to proceed on a tack after being hove to or halted facing the wind; fill away.

fill the bill. bill¹ (def. 16).

Origin of fill

before 900; Middle English fillen,Old English fyllan; cognate with German füllen,Gothic fulljan to make full; see full¹

OTHER WORDS FROM fill

fill·a·ble, adjectivehalf-filled, adjectiveun·filled, adjectivewell-filled, adjective

Words nearby fill

filiopietistic, Filipina, Filipino, Filipinx, filister, fill, fillagree, fill away, fille de joie, filled gold, filled milk

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use fill in a sentence

I ate my fill of dulce de leche ice cream with a plastic spoon as it grew cool and viscous at the edges and felt like I’d won a prize.
Six Months of Soft Food Set Me Free|Meghan McCarron|February 2, 2021|Eater
The top of the pad is constructed with 400 thread count 100 percent cotton fabric, and the pad is filled with alternative down fill.
The best mattress protectors for ensuring your bed lasts a long time|PopSci Commerce Team|January 19, 2021|Popular-Science
The package even comes with a separate fill bag, so you won’t need to place another order.
The best pillow: Sleep better in any position|Carsen Joenk|December 11, 2020|Popular-Science
There are also latex fill pillows, which are reasonably firm and will hold their shape.
The best pillow: Sleep better in any position|Carsen Joenk|December 11, 2020|Popular-Science

It’s made from shredded memory foam that is easily added to, using extra fill to customize the shape and support specific areas.
The best pillow: Sleep better in any position|Carsen Joenk|December 11, 2020|Popular-Science
But politicians abhor a rhetorical vacuum, and they have clamored to fill it.
The 2014 Novel of the Year|Nathaniel Rich|December 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
His regular partner was late that day, and Police Officer Wenjian Liu volunteered to fill in.
In The Shadow of Murdered Cops|Michael Daly|December 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
They are afflicted with “progressive spiritual emptiness,” he said, which no amount of academic honors and degrees can fill.
Pope Francis Denounces the Vatican Elite’s 'Spiritual Alzheimer’s'|Barbie Latza Nadeau|December 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It got so bad, that the school resorted to “Groupon-like services” to fill seats.
Is Any College Football Coach Worth $60 Million? Jim Harbaugh Is|Jesse Lawrence|December 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
They were allowed to bring one bag per family, which most fill with food.
Inside the Smuggling Networks Flooding Europe with Refugees|Barbie Latza Nadeau|December 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
To fill up the time till Liszt came, our hostess made us play, one after the other, beginning with the latest arrival.
Music-Study in Germany|Amy Fay
It was not an exalted niche to fill in life, but at least she had learned to fill it to perfection, and her ambitions were modest.
Ancestors|Gertrude Atherton
It's good for nothing but to choke a man and fill him full of smoke and embers.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce|E. R. Billings.
“Now this is what I call real felicity,” observed the major, pulling out a pipe which he proceeded to fill.
Hunting the Lions|R.M. Ballantyne
There was a moment's pause, and Doa Inez returned into the saloon, which was now beginning rapidly to fill.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 60, No. 372, October 1846|Various

British Dictionary definitions for fill

fill

/ (fɪl) /

verb (mainly tr often foll by up)

(also intr) to make or become fullto fill up a bottle; the bath fills in two minutes

to occupy the whole ofthe party filled two floors of the house

to plug (a gap, crevice, cavity, etc)

to meet (a requirement or need) satisfactorily

to cover (a page or blank space) with writing, drawing, etc

to hold and perform the duties of (an office or position)

to appoint or elect an occupant to (an office or position)

building trades to build up (ground) with fill

(also intr) to swell or cause to swell with wind, as in manoeuvring the sails of a sailing vessel

to increase the bulk of by adding an inferior substance

poker to complete (a full house, etc) by drawing the cards needed

mainly US and Canadian to put together the necessary materials for (a prescription or order)

fill the bill informal to serve or perform adequately

noun

material such as gravel, stones, etc, used to bring an area of ground up to a required level

one's fill the quantity needed to satisfy oneto eat your fill

See also fill away, fill in, fill out, fill up

Word Origin for fill

Old English fyllan; related to Old Frisian fella, Old Norse fylla, Gothic fulljan, Old High German fullen; see full 1, fulfil

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with fill

fill

In addition to the idioms beginning with fill

filled to the brim
fill in
fill out
fill someone's shoes
fill the bill

also see:

back and fill
get one's fill of

Also see underfull.

fill

Definition of fill

OTHER WORDS FOR fill

Idioms about fill

Origin of fill

OTHER WORDS FROM fill

Words nearby fill

Words related to fill

How to use fill in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for fill

Word Origin for fill

Other Idioms and Phrases with fill