fulfilling
Americanadjective
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.
He found it more "fulfilling" than some film shoots.
From BBC
"Seeing our research in action at farms like Preston Farms is incredibly fulfilling," Lock says.
From Science Daily
Dynes has also suddenly become a key piece in the Trojans rotation, fulfilling the hype that accompanied him in the preseason.
From Los Angeles Times
Another big year for potholes was the exceptionally wet 2023, when L.A. diverted crews from other regular duties to focus on fulfilling roughly 19,642 pothole repair requests the city had received over four months.
From Los Angeles Times
The company added that it will continue to focus on fulfilling orders in the U.S. while re-evaluating its approach to international availability.
From Barron's
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.
