fill-in

[ fil-in ]

/ ˈfɪlˌɪn /

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See synonyms for fill-in on Thesaurus.com

noun

a person or thing that fills in, as a substitute, replacement, or insertion: The company used a fill-in for workers on vacation.

a brief, informative summary; a rundown.

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Origin of fill-in

First recorded in 1915–20; noun use of verb phrase fill in

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

How to use fill-in in a sentence

This is a guy who has his son-in-law clean his eyeglasses, for crying out loud.
Will Chris Christie Regret His Cowboy Hug?|Matt Lewis|January 5, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Her travel clique has been known to arrive at an airport, bags packed, passport-in-hand, within hours of spotting a deal.
‘We Out Here’: Inside the New Black Travel Movement|Charlise Ferguson|January 4, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Earl Spencer adds, “Effectively, my great-grandfather sold his children to his father-in-law.”
The Real-Life ‘Downton’ Millionairesses Who Changed Britain|Tim Teeman|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The lack of a gun is not likely to be a major problem for close-in air-to-air dogfights against other jets.
New U.S. Stealth Jet Can’t Fire Its Gun Until 2019|Dave Majumdar|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST

But those weapons are of limited utility, especially during close-in fights.
New U.S. Stealth Jet Can’t Fire Its Gun Until 2019|Dave Majumdar|December 31, 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
Such throats are trying, are they not?In case one catches cold; Ah, yes!
Boys and Girls Bookshelf; a Practical Plan of Character Building, Volume I (of 17)|Various
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
The commander-in-chief still kept him attached to the headquarter staff, and constantly employed him on special service.
Napoleon's Marshals|R. P. Dunn-Pattison
So far Murat had always held subordinate commands; his great ambition was to become the commander-in-chief of an independent army.
Napoleon's Marshals|R. P. Dunn-Pattison

British Dictionary definitions for fill-in

fill in

verb (adverb)

(tr) to complete (a form, drawing, etc)

(intr) to act as a substitutea girl is filling in while the typist is away

(tr) to put material into (a hole or cavity), esp so as to make it level with a surface

(tr) informal to inform with facts or news

(tr) British slang to attack and injure severely

noun fill-in

a substitute

US informal a briefing to complete one's understanding

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-in

fill in

Complete something, especially by supplying more information or detail. For example, Be sure to fill in your salary history. It is also put as fill in the blanks, as in We'll rely on Mary to fill in the blanks. Yet another related usage is fill someone in, as in I couldn't attend, so will you fill me in? The first term dates from the mid-1800s; the others from the first half of the 1900s. Also see fill out.

Also, fill in for. Take someone's place, substitute for. For example, The understudy had to fill in at the last minute, or I can't come but my wife will fill in for me. Also see fill someone's shoes.