fill
Americanverb (used with object)
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fills,
present (3rd person singular)
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filled,
past participle, past
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filling
present participle
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to make full; put as much as can be held into.
to fill a jar with water.
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to occupy to the full capacity.
Water filled the basin.
The crowd filled the hall.
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to supply to an extreme degree or plentifully.
to fill a house with furniture;
to fill the heart with joy.
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to satisfy fully the hunger of; satiate.
The roast beef filled the diners.
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to put into a receptacle.
to fill sand into a pail.
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to be plentiful throughout.
Fish filled the rivers.
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to extend throughout; pervade completely.
The odor filled the room.
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to furnish with an occupant.
The landlord filled the vacancy yesterday.
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to provide (an office or opening) with an incumbent.
The company is eager to fill the controllership.
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to occupy and perform the duties of (a vacancy, position, post, etc.).
They have already found someone to fill the position.
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to supply the requirements or contents of (an order), as for goods; execute.
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to supply (a blank space) with written matter, decorative work, etc.
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to meet satisfactorily, as requirements.
This book fills a great need.
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to make up, compound, or otherwise provide the contents of (a medical prescription).
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to stop up or close (a cavity, hole, etc.).
to fill a tooth.
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Cooking. to insert a filling into.
to fill cupcakes with custard.
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Nautical.
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to distend (a sail) by pressure of the wind so as to impart headway to a vessel.
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to brace (a yard) so that the sail will catch the wind on its after side.
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to adulterate.
to fill soaps with water.
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Civil Engineering, Building Trades. to build up the level of (an area) with earth, stones, etc.
verb (used without object)
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fills,
present (3rd person singular)
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filled,
past participle, past
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filling
present participle
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to become full.
The hall filled rapidly.
Our eyes filled with tears.
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to increase in atmospheric pressure.
a filling cyclone.
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to become distended, as sails with the wind.
noun
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a full supply; enough to satisfy want or desire.
to eat one's fill.
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an amount of something sufficient for filling; charge.
The brigade had only one quarter of a fill of fuel.
He begged a fill of tobacco for his pipe.
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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.
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the feed and water in the digestive tract of a livestock animal, especially that consumed before marketing.
verb phrase
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fill out
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to complete (a document, list, etc.) by supplying missing or desired information.
It takes about 35 minutes to fill out the forms for hospital admission.
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to become larger, fuller, or rounder, as the figure.
The children have begun to fill out since I saw them last.
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fill up
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to fill completely.
to fill up a glass;
to fill up a fuel tank.
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to become completely filled.
The riverbed filled up as a result of the steady rains.
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fill in
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to supply missing or desired information.
He suggested you fill in the facts of your business experience.
For each sentence, fill in the blank with the correct word.
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to complete by adding detail, as a design or drawing.
to fill in a sketch with shadow.
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to substitute for.
to fill in for a colleague who is ill.
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to fill with some material.
to fill in a crack with putty.
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Informal. to supply (someone) with information.
Please fill me in on the morning news.
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fill away
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to fall off the wind and proceed on a board.
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to brace the yards, so that sails that have been aback will stand full.
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idioms
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fill and stand on, (of a sailing vessel) to proceed on a tack after being hove to or halted facing the wind; fill away.
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fill the bill. bill.
verb
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(also intr) to make or become full
to fill up a bottle
the bath fills in two minutes
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to occupy the whole of
the party filled two floors of the house
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to plug (a gap, crevice, cavity, etc)
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to meet (a requirement or need) satisfactorily
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to cover (a page or blank space) with writing, drawing, etc
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to hold and perform the duties of (an office or position)
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to appoint or elect an occupant to (an office or position)
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building trades to build up (ground) with fill
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(also intr) to swell or cause to swell with wind, as in manoeuvring the sails of a sailing vessel
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to increase the bulk of by adding an inferior substance
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poker to complete (a full house, etc) by drawing the cards needed
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to put together the necessary materials for (a prescription or order)
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informal to serve or perform adequately
noun
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material such as gravel, stones, etc, used to bring an area of ground up to a required level
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the quantity needed to satisfy one
to eat your fill
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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fillsimple
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fillssimple
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have filledperfect
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has filledperfect
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am fillingprogressive
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are fillingprogressive
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is fillingprogressive
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have been fillingperfect progressive
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has been fillingperfect progressive
Past
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filledsimple
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had filledperfect
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was fillingprogressive
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were fillingprogressive
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had been fillingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of fill
First recorded before 900; Middle English fillen, fullen, fellen, Old English fyllan; cognate with German füllen, Gothic fulljan “to make full”; see origin at full 1
Explanation
When you fill something, you add to it until it's full, or has enough. When your car's almost out of gas, you have to fill the tank at a gas station. You can fill a bathtub with hot water and bubbles, but there's also a figurative way to fill: "Scary movies fill me with anxiety," or "Traveling fills me with a sense of adventure." When the smell of chopped raw onions fills the air in your kitchen, your eyes might reflexively fill with tears. When fill is a noun, it means "something that fills a space."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
It’s time to fill that gap in the pilgrimage, from Oregon south and across the Golden Gate Bridge.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 6, 2026
The stage felt emptier without them, but their bandmates worked hard to fill the gaps, hyping up the crowd with a succession of bass-heavy pop anthems and jaw-dropping dance breaks.
From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026
Greg Dubuque, general manager for a trucking fleet based out of Montebello, noted that the cost to fill his trucks in California has gone from around $1,200 in April to $1,800.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026
Your deferrals and your employer’s contributions fill that space first.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 3, 2026
It glowed and ebbed and seemed to fill too much space to be a regular light source.
From "Woodsong" by Gary Paulsen
The review would be done by the Los Angeles Continuum of Care, a behind-the-scenes board of community members that fills a Congressionally-mandated role guiding policy for federally-funded programs.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella celebrated her rescue on social media, describing it as "news which fills us with hope".
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
The stench of rotten eggs and burning debris fills the air in Boxtown, a predominantly Black neighborhood in Memphis.
From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026
For two decades, the only shield against respiratory syncytial virus, which fills pediatric wards each winter, was a drug called Synagis.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026
Joey loves plants, so she fills her room with them— potted plants sit on the windowsill, ivy and philodendron overflow from hanging pots.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
"My heart leaps with joy when I see ice that looks like a jewel," said the 41-year-old, as he poured cold hojicha tea into a glass filled with a large, clear sphere.
From Barron's ● Sep. 6, 2026
With our pint glasses filled with water as we adjust to Telluride’s altitude, we try to figure it out.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 5, 2026
Paxton declined to be interviewed and did not answer detailed questions about how he filled out the disclosure forms.
From Salon ● Sep. 5, 2026
The chip shop fridge is filled with Irn Bru and other AG Barr brands.
From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026
The smell of burning plastic filled my nose.
From "Firegirl" by Tony Abbott
Since June, Stahl’s email inbox and LinkedIn messages have been filling up with unsolicited job opportunities.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 5, 2026
And the five-bedroom, three-story Oklahoma lodge he owns is listed online as a short-term rental for up to $1,200 a night, with fall bookings filling up fast.
From Salon ● Sep. 5, 2026
She said she was refused Personal Independence Payment after following the process of filling in an application form and then having a telephone interview, a process she described as "horrible".
From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026
It could do the same if state labor officials find a local job shortage the CSU program isn’t filling.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2026
Owen said, filling in for what was supposed to be George’s line.
From "Two Degrees" by Alan Gratz
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
