Synonyms

fulfilling

American

[fool-fil-ing] / fʊlˈfɪl ɪŋ /

adjective

satisfying or rewarding, especially by meeting the emotional need for meaning, challenge, growth, success, etc..

The young graduates were looking forward to the adventure of growing personally, gaining new skills, and embarking on a fulfilling career.

Usage

What does fulfilling mean? Fulfilling means providing or resulting in satisfaction or contentment. A job is fulfilling when it allows a person to fully use their talents and work on projects that they enjoy and that they find meaning in. A relationship is fulfilling for someone when it brings them happiness and a deep connection. Fulfilling is also the continuous tense (-ing form) of the verb fulfill, meaning “to satisfy” or “to bring about” (which is how it’s used in the term self-fulfilling, as in self-fulfilling prophecy). Something that’s fulfilling leads to fulfillment—a state of satisfaction or contentment. Someone who feels this way can be described as fulfilled. Example: My trip across Europe has been so fulfilling—I’ve learned new languages and new cultures, and, most importantly, I’ve learned new things about myself.

Etymology

Origin of fulfilling

First recorded in 1300–50; fulfill ( def. ) + -ing ² ( def. )

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.

Fervo, a geothermal startup that made its public debut last week, is closer than many to fulfilling that promise.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 26, 2026

"Is this the lifestyle that I want to live? No. But being in Bristol is fun and being embedded in creative circles is more than fulfilling."

From BBC • May 25, 2026

Pillai said there are about 25 people working in the US field office in the DRC, and that the CDC was fulfilling a request to send an additional senior technical coordinator.

From Barron's • May 18, 2026

“Never Be the Same” captures him reaching new artistic heights in a career that has been at turns fulfilling and frustrating.

From Salon • May 15, 2026

She died without betraying her brother, fulfilling a promise she had made him many years before, the day she first took him to school.

From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023