fill

[ fil ]

/ fɪl /

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.

Cookery. 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.

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.

QUIZZES

TAKE THIS QUIZ TO SEE WHAT YOU KNOW ABOUT HIGH SCHOOL PUNCTUATION!

Commas mark divisions in sentences. Periods end declarative sentences. Apostrophes show possession. Easy, right? Well, punctuation can get pretty tricky—fast. Think you got what it takes to be a punctuation expert? Take our quiz to prove it!

Question 1 of 10

Which of the options below is the best punctuation for the sentence? It__s your turn to pick the movie __ but your sister gets to pick the board game we _ re going to play.

Its your turn to pick the movie but your sister gets to pick the board game we’re going to play.

It’s your turn to pick the movie but your sister gets to pick the board game were going to play.

It’s your turn to pick the movie, but your sister gets to pick the board game we’re going to play.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Idioms for 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

SYNONYMS FOR fill

2 crowd, pack, jam, cram.

13 satisfy, answer, fulfill.

OTHER WORDS FROM fill

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

Words nearby fill

filing clerk, filings, filiopietistic, filipino, filister, fill, fill away, fill in, fill light, fill out, fill someone's shoes

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for half-filled

Elsewhere the close observer mentally notes a half-filled nosebag.
A Yeoman's Letters|P. T. Ross
They looked at the half-filled 'bus, they looked at the two soldiers, and waited, motionless.
Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 150, May 3, 1916|Various
Many cigarette and cigar stubs filled the smoking stand, and a half-filled whiskey-and-soda glass stood on the window sill.
Kastle Krags|Absalom Martin
The scene of action was a moderate-sized room, half-filled with the lowest populace.
Tour in England, Ireland, and France, in the years 1826, 1827, 1828 and 1829.|Hermann Pckler-Muskau

The other pan was half-filled with very hot water, and a teaspoonful of ammonia put in.
A Little Housekeeping Book for a Little Girl|Caroline French Benton

British Dictionary definitions for half-filled (1 of 2)

half-filled

adjective

(of a vessel, place, etc) holding or containing half its capacity

British Dictionary definitions for half-filled (2 of 2)

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

Idioms and Phrases with half-filled

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.